Technical   Drawing  Sc. 


ooC 


FREE-HAND  LETTERING 

DANIELS 


ifornia 
Dnal 


LIBRARY 

THE  UNIVERSITY 
OF  CALIFORNIA 

SANTA  BARBARA 

IN  MEMORIAM 
MRS.  ALFRED  W.  INGALLS 


TECHNICAL    DRAWING    SERIES 


A  TEXT-BOOK  OF  FREE-HAND  LETTERING 


BY 


FRANK   T.    DANIELS,   A.M.B. 
V 

AUTHOR   OF    "A    TEXT-BOOK    OF    TOPOGRAPHICAL    DRAWING" 


REVISED  AND  ENLARGED  EDITION 


BOSTON,  U.S.A. 
D.    C.    HEATH    &    CO.,   PUBLISHERS 

1909 


COPYRIGHT,  1895  AND  1907, 
BY  FRANK  T.   DANIELS. 


UCSB  LIBRA 


PREFACE 


THE  changes  in  this  edition  of  "  Free-hand  Lettering  "  are  so  numerous  and  radical  that 
the  result  is  a  new  book,  rather  than  a  revision  of  the  old  one.  The  text  has  been  entirely 
rewritten,  and  new  plates  and  figures  have  been  drawn.  The  proportions  of  letters  have  been 
greatly  improved,  and  a  distinctly  higher  standard  has  been  set  for  the  student.  At  the  same 
time,  he  is  given  careful  directions  to  enable  him  to  approach  the  standard.  These  directions 
have  been  made  as  explicit  and  clear  as  possible,  for  the  author  is  well  aware  that  the  time 
which  can  be  given  to  this  work  in  the  technical  schools  is  very  limited. 

Throughout  the  book  there  is  a  constant  attempt  to  present  principles  which  will  appeal 
to  the  student's  reason,  rather  than  to  give  rules  which  will  only  tax  his  memory ;  that  is,  an 
effort  is  made  to  show  that  the  details,  which  at  first  sight  may  seem  numberless  and  involved, 
have  a  logical  basis.  When  this  basis  is  once  understood,  no  effort  of  memory  is  necessary 
for  the  proper  handling  of  details.  On  the  other  hand,  teachers  should  remember,  especially 
in  the  first  stages  of  the  work,  that  it  is  not  sufficient  for  students  to  understand  reasons.  In 
order  that  they  may  attain  the  object  of  their  work  in  this  subject,  they  must  acquire  skill  in 
execution ;  wherefore  the  definite  directions  for  performing  exercises. 

There  is  repeated  insistence  in  the  text  that  lettering  belongs  in  the  realm  of  design. 
If  the  work  is  approached  with  this  idea,  it  will  be  done  with  pleasure,  and  with  a  sense  that 
it  is  a  means  of  expressing  individuality. 

The  definite  examples  and  exercises  for  practice  constitute  a  complete  minimum  course, 
which  can  easily  be  extended  by  those  who  can  give  additional  time  to  the  subject.  These 


iv  PREFACE 

definite  examples,  exercises,  and  directions  for  work  save  the  time  of  both  instructor  and 
student,  and  constitute  an  important  feature  of  all  the  books  in  the  Technical  Drawing 
Series. 

Plate  XIII  was  made  directly  from  a  drawing  of  the  Massachusetts  Metropolitan  Water 
Works,  and  Plate  XV  from  the  tracing  of  a  drawing  from  the  same  source.  Plate  IX  was 
drawn  by  the  author  from  the  "  Ephemeris  Epigraphica,"  Vol.  I,  and  all  other  plates  and  the 
figures  in  the  text  were  devised  and  drawn  by  the  author. 

BOSTON,  August,  1907. 


TABLE  OF  CONTENTS 


CHAPTER  I 
INTRODUCTION  AND  PRELIMINARY  EXERCISES 


ART.  PAGE 

1.  General  Requirements 1 

2.  Paper 2 

3.  The  Pencil 2 

4.  Pens 3 

5.  Triangle  and  Scale 3 

6.  Limiting  Lines 3 

7.  General  Directions,  Exercise  1  .         .         .         .3 

8.  Estimation  of  Distance  and  Direction       .         .       4 

9.  Comparison  of  Lines  and  Spaces       ...       4 
10.   Comparison  of  Widths 4 


11.  Comparison  of  Vertical  with  Horizontal  Dis- 

tances       4 

12.  Backward-sloping  Lines 7 

13.  Slopes  to  Right  and  Left 7 

14.  Effect  of  Diagonal  Lines,  Exercise  2  7 

15.  Effect  of  Many  Angles 7 

16.  Two  Diagonals 7 

17.  Two  Slopes  and  a  Vertical         ....      7 

18.  Unsymmetrical  Figure 8 

19.  Effect  of  Small  Angles       .         .        .         .         .8 

20.  General  Directions,  Exercise  3  .        .        .        .8 


CHAPTER   II 
GENERAL   CONSIDERATIONS   APPLICABLE   TO   ALL   STYLES  OF  LETTERS 


21.  Principles  governing  Form 

22.  Optical  Illusions 

23.  Effect  of  Acute  Angles 


24.  Relative  Heights  of  Lower-case  Letters 

25.  Limiting  Lines 


VI 


TABLE   OF  CONTENTS 


CHAPTER  III 
UPRIGHT  AND  INCLINED  GOTHIC   LETTERS 


26.  A  Simple  but  Useful  Style         ....     13 

27.  No  Standard  Proportions 13 

28.  Printers'  Types  not  to  be  taken  as  Models        .     14 

29.  Proportions  to  be  followed  in  Practice      .         .     14 

30.  Laying  out  the  Sheet 14 

31.  The  Scale  for  measuring  Widths       .         .         .17 

32.  The  Proper  Use  of  the  Scale     .        .        .        .     17 

33.  The  Scheme  of  Plate  II 18 

34.  Thickness  of  Stems  of  Upright  Gothic      .        .18 

35.  Special  Details  of  Form 18 


ART.  PAGE 

36.  Weight  of  Pencil  Lines 20 

37.  Gothic  Letters  and  Figures  for  Reference         .     23 

38.  Use  of  Inclined  Gothic 23 

39.  Amount  of  Inclination 23 

40.  Transition  from  Upright  to  Inclined  Gothic    .     24 

41.  Curves  of  Letters  are  Portions  of  the  O    .         .     27 

42.  Thickness  of  Steins  of  Inclined  Gothic      .         .     27 

43.  Modified  Inclined  Gothic  .        .        .        .        .    27 

44.  Exercises .28 


CHAPTER  IV 
SPACING 


45.  The  Problem .29 

46.  Some  Guiding  Principles  in  Spacing         .  .     29 

47.  All  the  Words  in  a  Line  must  be  Considered  .     32 

48.  Summary  of  Hints  on  Spacing  .        .        .  .32 


49.  Equivalent  Areas  and  Forms  of  Letters   .        .  33 

50.  Spaces  between  Words 34 

51.  Spacing  in  Connection  with  Punctuation          .  34 

52.  Examples 34 


CHAPTER  V 
WORD  SKETCHING  AND  TITLE   BUILDING 


53.  The  Value  of  Preliminary  Sketching 

54.  The  Title  taken  as  an  Example 


55.  Nature  of  the  Title    . 

56.  Arrangement  of  Words 


Titles 


TABLE   OF  CONTENTS 


vn 


57.  Means  of  giving  Prominence     . 

58.  The  Outline  of  the  Title  as  a  Whole 


59.  Methods  of  Grouping  Parts  of  Titles 

60.  Exercise,  Plate  V 


PAGE 

39 
45 


CHAPTER  VI 
ROMAN  LETTERS  AND  FIGURES 


61.  Comparison  of  Modern  Roman  with   Gothic 

Letters 46 

62.  Width  of  Letters 46 

63.  Width  of  Stroke 49 

64.  The  Fillet 49 

65.  Order  of  Light  and  Heavy  Lines       .         .         .50 

66.  Special  Method  of  drawing  W  and  M                .  53 

67.  Italic  Roman                                       ...  53 


68.  Lower-case  Italic 53 

69.  Roman  Old  Style 54 

70.  Lower-case  Letters  and  Figures         .         .         .57 

71.  Old  Roman  for  Architectural  Work  .         .         .58 

72.  Design  of  Letters  in  Roman  Inscriptions  .         .     58 

73.  Stump  Writing 61 

74.  Examples 62 


CHAPTER   VII 
SINGLE-STROKE   AND   MISCELLANEOUS   LETTERS 


75.  The  Use  of  Single-stroke  Letters       ...  65 

76.  The  Pen      .         .         .         .         .    •    ~.        ...  65 

77.  Direction  of  Strokes  .         .         .  '     .         .         .66 

78.  Special  Treatment 69 

79.  Practice "  .  69 

80.  The  Slope 70 

81.  Titles  composed  of  Single-stroke  Letters  .         .  73 


82.  The  Centering  of  the  Lines 

83.  Single-stroke  Figures 

84.  The  Height  of  Figures 

85.  De  Vinne    .... 

86.  Open-faced  Gothic      . 

87.  Block  Letters      . 

88.  "Shadow  Letters"     . 


FREE-HAND    LETTERING 

CHAPTER   I 

INTRODUCTION    AND    PRELIMINARY    EXERCISES 

1.  General  Requirements.  A  draftsman  should  be  able  to  letter  his  drawings  not  only 
neatly  but  rapidly.  To  secure  speed  and  well-balanced  proportion,  he  must  be  able  to  do 
good  lining  free-hand,  and  to  estimate  accurately  both  distance  and  direction.  The  following 
exercises  are  designed  to  secure  such  results. 

Many  combinations  of  lines  deceive  the  eye,  not  only  as  to  the  extent  and  form  of  the 
areas  they  include,  but  also  as  to  the  relative  directions  of  the  lines.  The  degree  of  deception 
varies  under  different  conditions;  and  as  these  conditions  in  the  various  forms,  propor- 
tions, and  combinations  of  letters  are  unlimited,  it  is  impossible  to  give  rules  to .  cover  all 
cases  of  proportion,  spacing,  etc.,  in  individual  letters,  and  in  words  and  combinations  of 
words.  Hence  the  importance  that  the  general  principles  governing  good  taste  and  propor- 
tion be  learned,  in  order  that  the  draftsman  may  have  a  basis  for  solving  the  differing  prob- 
lems as  they  arise. 

The  execution  of  good  lettering  requires  considerable  manual  skill,  therefore  practice 
as  well  as  careful  observation  is  necessary. 

The  remarks  upon  each  exercise  should  be  read  carefully  before  practice  is  begun,  and 
suggestions  should  be  followed.  It  is  carefulness  rather  than  amount  of  practice  that  is  of 
value.  The  elementary  things  are  few,  but  they  must  be  thoroughly  learned  first. 

1 


2  INTRODUCTION   AND  PRELIMINARY   EXERCISES 

2.  Paper.      For  the  preliminary  exercises  and  for  any  work  that  is  not  to  be  inked,  use  a 
paper  with  a  moderately  soft  surface,  such  as  Whatman's  cold-pressed,  architects'  detail  paper, 
or  German  drawing  paper. 

For  work  that  is  to  be  finished  in  ink,  a  hard,  smooth  surface  must  be  used,  such  as 
Bristol  board,  Keuffel  &  Esser's  Normal  paper,  or  Weston's  linen  record  paper.  Most  of  the 
drawings  for  this  book  were  made  on  the  Weston  paper.  The  exercises  are  intended  to  be 
executed  upon  sheets  7  by  10  inches.  These  sheets  should  be  tacked,  with  the  long  edges 
horizontal,  to  a  small  drawing  board. 

3.  The  Pencil  suitable  for  this  work  will  depend  somewhat  on  the  paper.     Grade  2  H 
will  be  found  well  adapted  for  papers  of  medium  rough  surface.     Paper  with  a  hard  surface, 
which   has   also    considerable  "  tooth,"  or  roughness,  will  require  a  3  or  4  H  grade  pencil. 
Whatever  the  degree  of  hardness,  the  pencil  must  be  of  the  best  quality,  made  especially  for 
drawing.     Probably  the  best  pencils  now  on  the  market  are  Hardmuth's. 

The  care  of  the  point  is  of  prime  importance.  With  a  sharp  knife  cut  away  the  wood, 
beginning  the  cut  an  inch  back  from  the  end,  leaving  bare  at  least  one-fourth  inch  of  the 
"lead."  The  point  cannot  be  properly  finished  with  the  knife,  but  must  be  ground  upon  a 
piece  of  fine  sandpaper  fastened  to  a  flat  strip;  or,  better  still,  upon  a  file  such  as  is  sold  for 
that  purpose.  Rub  the  pencil  upon  the  file,  holding  the  latter  in  the  left  hand.  The  point 
must  be  long,  smooth,  and  conical,  but  not  quite  so  sharp  as  it  can  be  made. 

When  drawing,  hold  the  pencil  about  2|  inches  from  the  end,  and  be  careful  that  the 
forefinger  is  but  slightly  bent.  Exercise  constant  care  not  to  pinch  the  pencil,  otherwise  the 
muscles  will  soon  tire,  and  good  lines  cannot  be  made.  At  frequent  intervals  roll  the  pencil 
slightly  in  the  fingers  to  prevent  the  point  from  being  worn  flat.  Sharpen  frequently. 


EXERCISES  3 

4.  Pens.     A  variety  of  pens  will  be  needed.     Those  most  generally  useful  are  Gillott's 
Nos.  170,  303,  and  404;  Spencerian  "  Epistolaire  "  No.  12;  and  Leonardt  &  Co.'s  ball-pointed 
Nos.  506  F  and  506  EF.     The  skilled  draftsman  will  find  a  lithographic  or  mapping  pen  use- 
ful, but  these  pens  are  too  fine  and  flexible  for  most  students  to  use,  as  they  require  a  very 
light  touch. 

No  pen  is  at  its  best  when  new,  and  pens  that  are  once  "  broken  in  "  should  be  given  as 
great  care  as  any  other  drawing  instrument.  When  used  only  with  India  ink,  which  does  not 
corrode  them,  pens  will  remain  in  good  condition  for  a  long  time,  in  some  cases  for  years, 

5.  A  Triangle  and  a  Scale  will  be  useful,  the  former  for  testing  the  direction  of  lines,  and 
the  latter  for  laying  off  distances  between  limiting  lines  and  for  testing  distances  that  have 
been  estimated. 

6.  Limiting  Lines  are  ruled  lines  to  limit  the  height  of  letters.     A  T  square  is  most  con- 
venient for  drawing  them.     They  must  be  light,  fine,  and  accurately  parallel. 

When  it  is  necessary  to  erase  part  of  a  limiting  line,  it  must  be  drawn  in  again  before 
work  is  resumed,  for  these  lines  cannot  be  dispensed  with,  even  by  skilled  letterers. 

PLATE   I,   EXERCISE   1 

7.  General  Directions.  Draw  limiting  lines  according  to  dimensions  given.  Each  line 
of  each  exercise  is  to  extend  across  the  sheet,  except  that  a  space  of  about  one  inch  is  to 
be  left  at  each  end;  thus  each  exercise  will  fill  a  sheet.  The  blank  line  at  the  end  of 
each  exercise  is  for  additional  practice  upon  such  portions  of  the  exercise  as  shall  have  proved 
most  difficult. 


4  INTRODUCTION   AND  PRELIMINARY  EXERCISES 

8.  Line  1,  Estimation  of  Distance  and  Direction.     Make  a  dot  upon  the  upper  line  where 
the  work  will    begin,  then  another  vertically   below  it   upon   the   lower   line.     Draw   from 
the  upper  to  the  lower  point  a  fine,  light  line  with  one  stroke  of  the  pencil.     Go  over  the 
line  as  many  times  as  need  be  to  make  it  straight  and  firm,  but  always  with  a  stroke  the 
full  length  of  the  line.     Now  place  another  pair  of  points  at  an  estimated  distance  of  one- 
fourth  inch  from   the   first  pair,  and  draw  the  second  line.     After  having  drawn  several 
lines,   test   to  see   if   they  are   vertical  and   one-fourth   inch   apart.      If   not,  do   not   erase 
them,  but  seek  to  correct  the  errors  in  the  following  lines.     In  the  latter  half  of  the  exercise, 
seek  to  dispense  with  the  points  upon  the  limiting  lines. 

9.  Line  2,  Comparison   of   Lines   and   Spaces.     Draw  in  pairs.     A  dash  on   the   upper 
line  forms   a   pair  with  the  one  below  it.     Draw  the  upper  line  of  a  pair  first,  and  finish 
each  pair  before  drawing  the  next.     Be  careful  that  the  pairs  are  at  the  correct  distances  apart. 

10.  Line  3,  Comparison  of  Widths.     Make   the   angle   between   vertical   and   horizontal 
lines   sharp  and  decided.     Some  difficulty   may  be  experienced  in  estimating  the   distance 
from  L  to  T,  as  we  must  here  pass  from  the  lower  to  the  upper  line.     When  the  L  is  finished 
place  a  point  vertically  above  its   right-hand  limit,  and  from  this  estimate  the  distance  to 
the  beginning  of  the  T.     Notice  that  when  these  letters  are  of  the  same  width  the  T  looks 
the   narrower;  notice   also   that   while   there   is   the   same   horizontal   distance   between  the 
letters,  they  do  not  appear  evenly  spaced. 

11.  Line  4,  Comparison  of  a  Vertical  with  a  Horizontal  Distance.     Place  a  point  for  the 
lower  end  of  the  first  line.     Point  vertically  above  this,  arid  to  the  right  upon  the  upper 
line  point  a  distance  equal  to  the  distance  between  the  limiting  lines.     Join  the  last  point 
with  the  first  at  a  single  stroke. 


TT 


|:flin:    inzfsi: 


M* 

4 


TUT:    :::x , 

1 1  urn 


rii*iir  *isiri 


r 


Exercise  1  Exercised  Exercises 


Plate  I 


EXERCISES  7 

12.  Line  5,  Backward- si  oping  Lines.     Point   as  suggested  in  the    Plate,  and  draw  from 
the  top  downward,  resting  the  hand  upon  the  paper  between  the  work  and  the  right-hand 
edge  of  the  sheet. 

13.  Line   6,  Slopes   to   Right   and    Left.     Point   carefully   as  follows:  on  the  lower  line 
estimate  the  extreme  width  of  figure,  and  bisect  it.     Point  upon  the   upper  line  vertically 
above    the   bisecting   point;    or   a   square   may  first  be  very  lightly  outlined,  and  its  upper 
side   bisected.     The   latter   half   of   the   line   may  consist   of   Vs.      Note    that    with   equal 
height  and  width  of  figure  the  width   appears  less. 

PLATE  I,  EXERCISE  2 

14.  Line  1,  Effect  of  Diagonal  Lines.     Draw  the  vertical  lines  first.     Note  that  when  the 
diagonal  line  is  added,  the  figure  seems    to  have  been    slightly    widened.     Omit   pointing  in 
latter  half  of  line,  but  always  draw  vertical  lines  first. 

15.  Line  2,  Effect  of  Many  Angles.     The  figure  is  made  considerably  wider  than    those  pre- 
viously given ;  otherwise  the  presence  of  three  acute  angles  would  cause  the  figure  to  look 
pinched  and  out  of  proportion.     Draw  vertical  lines  first,  and  draw  all  lines  downward. 

16.  Line  3,  Two  Diagonals.     This  combination  of  lines  requires  some  care  to  secure  a  sym- 
metrical figure,  leaning  neither  forward  nor  backward. 

17.  Line  4,  Two  Slopes  and  a  Vertical.     Be  careful  that  the  figures  in  this  line  are  like  one 
another.     Note  that  this  combination  of  lines  causes  the  figure  to  appear  a  little  narrower  than 
the  figure  of  line  3 ;  hence  the  greater  width  assigned  to  the  figure  of  line  4. 


8  INTRODUCTION   AND  PRELIMINARY   EXERCISES 

18.  Line  5,  Unsymmetrical  Figure.     The  effect  of  this  combination  is  to  cause  the  figure 
to  look  a  little  wider  than  it  is  high.     Draw  the  lines  in  the  order  indicated,  and  always  down- 
ward. 

19.  Line  6,  Effect  of  Small  Angles.     This  combination  of  lines  gives  more  acute  angles 
than  does  the  combination  in  line  2,  with  the  result  that  the  figure   must  be   considerably 
widened  to  escape  a  decidedly  pinched  appearance. 

PLATE  I,  EXERCISE  3 

20.  'General  Directions.     Detailed  directions  for  this  exercise  should  not  be  needed  if  the 
following  hints  are  heeded  :  — 

Note  that  each  figure  is  a  quadrant,  or  a  combination  of  quadrants,  and  that  it  occupies 
either  a  square,  or  a  rectangle  whose  length  is  twice  its  width.  So  far  as  possible,  draw  each 
figure  with  a  single  continuous  stroke,  rather  than  with  a  series  of  short  dashes.  Use  a  draw- 
ing instrument  occasionally  to  test  the  curves.  In  line  6  draw  the  vertical  lines  first,  then 
add  the  curve. 


CHAPTER   II 

GENERAL    CONSIDERATIONS   APPLICABLE    TO   ALL    STYLES   OF    LETTERS 

21.  Principles  governing  Form.  It  is  important  that  the  principles  governing  the  forms 
of  letters,  whether  of  the  Gothic,  Roman,  or  other  style,  be  understood  before  any  attempt  is 
made  at  drawing  even  the  simplest  letters.  While  no  alphabet  is  made  upon  anything  like  a 
mathematical  basis,  yet  there  are  a  few  principles  which  by  common  consent  apply  in  the  con- 
struction of  letters  of  whatever  style. 

FIRST,  letters  should  have  an  appearance  of  both  stability  and  grace.  In  letters  with  a 
narrow  base,  as  F  and  P,  it  is  impossible  to  avoid  a  top-heavy  effect,  but  in  general  the  correct 
form  with  respect  to  stability  and  grace  is  secured  :  — 

1.  By  making  the  lower  part  of  the  letter  wider  than  the  upper,  as  in  B,  E,  K,  R,  S,  X, 
and  Z. 

2.  By  placing  some  horizontal  members  above  the  center,  as  in  B,  E,  F,  H,  and  R. 
Some  letters,  as  B  and  E,  exhibit  both  the  above  principles. 

In  a  few  cases,  notably  in  A,  the  horizontal  line  is  placed  below  the  center  for  reasons 
which  can  best  be  explained  later  (Art.  49). 

SECOND,  since  letters  are  used  in  combinations  to  form  words,  it  is  not  sufficient  to  secure 
a  graceful  form  for  the  individual  letters,  considering  each  by  itself,  but  they  must  be  so  pro- 
portioned that  when  compared  with  one  another  the  effect  of  the  combination  will  be  pleasing 


10        GENERAL  CONSIDERATIONS  FOR  ALL  STYLES  OF  LETTERS 

to  the  eye.  It  is  quite  apparent  that  the  I  cannot  be  as  wide  as  the  H,  nor  would  any  one 
draw  the  J  as  wide  as  the  W,  and  the  reasons  for  these  differences  would  not  be  far  to  seek  ; 
but  why  the  O  need  be  wider  than  the  E  is  not  so  plain. 

22.    Optical  Illusions.     Referring  to  Fig.  1,  it  is  seen  that  the  converging  lines  form  a 

figure  whose  width  at  the  base  is  apparently  considerably  less  than  the  width  of  the  square, 

_    although  these  widths  are    really  equal.     This    apparent    difference    in 

A  extreme  width  is  due  to  the  fact  that  in  the  first  case  the  width  is  con- 

I  stantly  changing,  while  in  the  other  case  it  is  everywhere  the  same.  In 
the  first  case  the  eye  does  not  discriminate  between  the  width  at  the 
base  and  the  width  taken  all  along  from  base  to  top,  but  attempts  to 
accept  their  average  for  the  extreme  width,  and  partly  succeeds  ;  while  in 
the  case  of  the  square  the  width  at  the  base  is  the  same  as  at  any  other 
_.  .  '  point,  and  there  is  no  deception  concerning  this  dimension.  No  amount 

of  study  of  the  figure  will  cause  this  apparent  difference  in  widths  to  disap- 
pear ;  hence  the  deception  is  not  due  to  an  untrained  eye,  but  to  psychological  reasons.  When 
similar  combinations  of  lines  occur  in  lettering  or  other  design,  allowances  must  be  made  to 
overcome  such  unbalanced  appearances  ;  for  instance,  in  Plate  II  the  A  is  made  wider  than  the 
H.  Referring  again  to  Fig.  1,  it  will  be  noted  that  the  O,  although  of  the  same  width  and 
height  as  the  E,  looks  both  narrower  and  shorter,  because  the  eye  (or  rather  the  mind)  tends 
to  accept  the  average  width  and  height  for  the  extreme.  Hence  the  necessity  of  making  the  O 
wider  and  higher  than  the  E  of  the  same  alphabet.  These  considerations  lead  us  to  the  gen- 
eral rule  that  when  the  width  or  height  of  a  letter  is  constantly  changing,  these  dimensions  must  be 
Creased. 


I 

' 


RELATIVE    HEIGHTS   OF   LETTERS  11 

Some  exceptions  to  this  rule  must  be  made,  as  in  the  case  of  the  B.  If  the  width  as  com- 
pared with  the  height  be  so  great  that  portions  of  the  top  and  bottom  lines  are  straight  and 
horizontal,  as  is  generally  the  case,  no  increase  in  height  is  necessary.  The  width  needs  no 
increase,  partly  because  of  the  straight  line  which  limits  it  at  the  left,  but  principally  because 
of  the  middle  horizontal  line,  which  breaks  the  outline  into  two  loops,  each  wider  than  it 
is  high. 

23.  Effect  of   Acute  Angles.     There  is    little    deception   of  appearance  in  the  width    of 
the  M,  yet  this  letter  is  drawn  considerably  wider  than,  for  instance,  the  H.     The  reason  is 
that  the  angle  between  adjacent  lines  must  not  be  very  acute;  otherwise  the  letter  will  have  a 
squeezed,  uncomfortable,  and  unpleasing  appearance.     Hence  the  M  is  spread  out  to  give  suffi- 
ciently wide  angles  between  its  lines.     For  the  same  reason,  and  also  because  its  extreme  lines 
are  converging,  the  W  is  drawn  much  wider  than  E  or  H. 

24.  Relative  Heights  of  Lower-case  Letters.     The  lower-case,  or  "  small "  letters,  may  be 
divided  into  three  groups  :  first,  those  like  b  and  d  which  have  the  same  height  and  limiting 
lines  as  the  capitals  with  which  they  would  be  combined  in  words ;  second,  those  like  a  and  c 
which  have  their  bases  drawn  on  the  same  lower  limiting  line  with  the  capitals,  but  which  are 
much  shorter  than  the  latter ;  third,  those  like  g  and  j  which  extend  below  the  lower  limiting 
line  of  the  capitals. 

The  t  might  form  a  fourth  class,  as  its  height  is  less  than  that  of  the  first  group,  and 
greater  than  that  of  the  seconck 

In  proportioning  the  lower-case  alphabet  the  first  question  to  be  settled  is  the  actual 
height  of  the  letters  in  the  second  group  as  compared  with  the  height  of  the  capitals  with 


12        GENERAL  CONSIDERATIONS  FOR  ALL  STYLES  OF  LETTERS 

which  they  are  to  be  used.  Different  designers  use  different  ratios.  In  this  book  the  short 
letters  are  made  two-thirds  as  high  as  the  others,  as  this  is  believed  to  be  the  ratio  which  most 
nearly  suits  all  cases. 

25.    Limiting   Lines.     The  height  of  capitals  having  been  fixed  by  their  limiting  lines 

.  1  and   2,  Fig.  2,  the  height  of  the  first  group  of 

f  j     the  lower-case  letters  will   be   fixed  by  the  same 
lw  I      lines.     Line  3  drawn  above  2  at  two-thirds  the  dis- 
tance from  2  to  1  will  limit  the  height  of  the  letters 
of  the  second  group,  while  those  of  the  third  group 
=>'  will  be  limited  at  the  top   by  line  3,   and   at  the 

bottom  by  line  4,  which  is  drawn  as  far  below  2  as  3  is  below  1. 


CHAPTER  III 

UPRIGHT   AND    INCLINED    GOTHIC    LETTERS 

26.  A  Simple  but  Useful  Style.     The  Gothic  alphabet  is  the  simplest  style,  and  when  well 
drawn  is  suitable  for  almost  any  purpose.     Its  simplicity  renders  it  especially  useful  as  the  first 
alphabet  to  be  studied,  for  with  the  fewest  possible  strokes  in  each  letter  to  deal  with,  it  is  easier 
to  give  due  attention  to  proportion,  without  which  no  letters  are  well  drawn,  however  well  they 
may  be  executed  in  other  respects.      Moreover,  the  Gothic  letters  may  be  regarded  as  a  basis 
for  all  the  other  styles  considered  in  this  book. 

27.  No  Standard  Proportions.     By  reference  to  Plate  II  it  will  be  seen  that  the  height  of 
letters  is  assumed  to  be  divided  into  six  equal  parts,  or  units,  and  that  each  letter  and  figure  is 
assigned  a  certain  number  of  these  units  for  its  width.     It  should  be  plainly  understood  that 
the  proportions  thus  indicated  are  not  standard.     Lettering  is  a  matter  of  design,  and  each  de- 
signer is  at  liberty  to  follow  his  own  ideas,  just  as  an  architect  follows  the  dictates  of  his  taste 
in  proportioning.     But  in  both  cases  there  are  certain  fundamental  principles  which  will  govern 
the  general  matter  of  design.     No  one  can  state  that  the  M  should  be  exactly  6£  units  wide  for 
6  units  in  height,  or  that  the  H  should  be  5  units  wide.     Both  of  these  letters  are  often  drawn 
with  quite  different  proportions.     But  the  principle  of  design  recognized  as  governing  the 
relation  of  H  and  M  is  that,  whatever  width  be  given  to  the  H,  a  greater  width  must  be  given 
to  the  M  of  the  same  alphabet. 

13 


14  UPRIGHT   AND  INCLINED   GOTHIC   LETTERS 

Furthermore,  since  letters  are  combined  to  form  words,  the  proportion  of  each  letter 
must  be  considered  with  reference  to  its  effect  upon  its  neighbor.  As  the  architect  varies 
the  proportions  of  doors,  windows,  and  ornamental  features  so  that  each  will  contribute  to  the 
harmony  of  the  whole,  so  the  designer  proportions  each  letter  in  a  word  with  due  regard  to 
the  forms  of  the  neighboring  letters.  Thus,  in  such  a  word  as  CARTWRIGHT  the  tail  of  the 
first  R  will  extend  a  little  farther  to  the  right  than  will  that  of  the  second  R,  in  order  to  close 
up  what  would  be  a  wide  space  at  the  left  of  the  stem  of  the  T. 

28.  Printers'  Types  not  to  be  taken  as  Models.     From  the  foregoing  it  will  be  seen  that 
printed   letters   should    not  be    taken   as  models,  and   that   types   cannot   be   used  to  good 
advantage    to  print  titles  or  other  lettering  on  drawings,  for  the  fixed   forms  and  limited 
means  for  adjusting  the  spaces  between  letters  render  it  impossible  to  make  the  result  a  design. 

29.  Proportions  to  be  followed  in  Practice.     The  proportions  given  on  the  Plates  should 
be    regarded  as  good  average  proportions,  and  the  draftsman  should  adhere  rigidly  to  these 
proportions  in  the  practice  work,  although  he  ma}r  use  somewhat  different  proportions  after  his 
taste  has  become  adjusted  to  the  principles  of  design. 

30.  Laying  out  the  Sheet.     The  sheet  should  be  7  by  10  inches  in  size,  with  no  border 
line;  or,  if  a  border  line  is  desired,  it  should  inclose  a  space  7  by  10  inches,  the  margin  ex- 
tending beyond.      In  either  case  the  distances  given  on  the  Plates  for  laying  out  the  sheet 
are  to  be   measured  from  the  sides  of  the  7-inch  by  10-inch  rectangle.     Draw  the  limiting 
lines  in  accordance  with  the  dimensions  given  at  the  left  of  the  Plate.     These  lines  should 
be  firm  but  fine  lines,  drawn  with  a  pencil  of  about  4  H  grade.     They  will  be  continuous, 


GOTHIC-FOR  PRACTICE 

4*  5* 


1  SEHEDffictonfcseBS 

si  ci  jS  '  '    •    '  c 


4- 


f  ERQDQanc;SGEQQSS- 

So  ^  5 

VL       VV      !AX^    ^—i     1^     wl     I'l-l     I    III    II     |^_  ^|    I       W_l 

_.  „  ...  5  —  5-— 5  —  r-T-  5  ;-j|---  --g-  -  -j-  "_;iT;rjniV32""22  f 


t 

t 

4 


4?  5          4|  5 


Plate  II 


THE  PROPER  USE  OF  THE  SCALE 


17 


or  "  full,"  lines,  and  not  dotted  as  shown  in  the  plate.  The  figures  by  which  the  limiting 
lines  are  placed  should  not  be  copied  on  the  practice  sheet,  as  they,  and  indeed  the  limiting 
lines  also,  are  but  means  to  an  end,  the  real  problem  being  the  drawing  of  the  letters  in 
their  correct  proportions. 

31.    The  Scale  for  measuring  Widths.      The  space  between  the  lines  limiting  the  height 
of  the  capitals,  and  also  that  between  the  lines  limiting  the  height  of  i,  v,  x,  etc.,  in  the 
lower-case  letters,  should  be  divided  into  six  equal  parts, 
not   by  actual  measurements  Jbut  free-hand.     First  bisect 
the  space,  then  divide  each  of  the  half-heights  thus  formed 
into  three  equal  parts.     Next    bring  the  edge   of   a   card 
near   the   points   of   division   and   copy  them   upon  it,  as 
shown   in    Fig.  3,  extending  the  number  of  divisions  to 
eight. 

This  scale  will  be  used  in  measuring  the  widths  of 
letters. 


Fig.  3 


32.  The  Proper  Use  of  the  Scale.  The  scale  will  prove  to  be  either  a  help  or  a  hindrance, 
according  to  its  proper  or  improper  use.  Always  remember  that  the  formation  of  letters 
is  a  problem  in  free-hand  design,  and  not  one  in  mechanical  drawing.  The  scale  will  then 
be  used  as  little  as  possible,  and  when  used  it  will  be  after  a  letter  has  been  drawn,  in 
order  to  test  the  accuracy  of  its  proportion,  rather  than  to  lay  out  the  proportionate  width 
before  drawing  the  letter. 

When   the   designer  knows   that   his   proportions   are   right   by  looking   at  the   letters 


18  UPRIGHT   AND   INCLINED   GOTHIC   LETTERS 

and  feeling  a  sense  of  harmony,  then  the  scale  may,  and  indeed  should,  be  dispensed  with. 
Until  that  time  is  reached,  it  will  be  useful  in  correcting  errors  of  judgment,  and  so  help 
the  designer  to  a  sense  of  proportion. 

33.  The  Scheme  of  Plate  II.      The  letters  are  arranged  in  the  progressive  order  of  the 
difficulty  of  drawing  them.     First,  those  composed  of  straight  vertical  and  horizontal  lines ; 
second,  those  containing  inclined  straight  lines ;  and  finally,  those  consisting  partly  or  wholly 
of  curved  lines. 

Two  of  each  of  the  capitals  are  to  be  drawn.  Estimate  the  width  of  the  first  letter  of 
each  pair  in  accordance  with  the  number  of  units  shown.  After  the  sketching  of  the  letter  is 
completed,  measure  its  width  with  the  scale.  Note  carefully  the  defects.  Do  not  correct  them 
in  the  first  letter  of  the  pair,  but  seek  to  do  so  as  you  draw  the  second,  still  refraining  from 
using  the  scale  until  the  outlining  is  finished.  If  necessary,  make  erasures  and  corrections  in 
the  second  letter  of  each  pair;  but  this  should  not  be  necessary  if  the  defects  in  the  first  are 
carefully  noted. 

34.  Thickness  of  Stems.     The  thickness  of  the  lines  composing  the  capital  letters  and 
figures  is  one-ninth  of  the  total  height,  or  two-thirds  of  a  unit,  as  shown  by  the  I.     For  the 
lower-case  letters  this  thickness  is  three-fourths  of  a  unit. 

35.  Special  Details  of  Form.     In  many  cases  the  first  letters  of  pairs  are  shown  with 
dotted  lines  calling  attention  to  details  of  form.     For  instance,  the  X  and  S  are  shown  to  be 
narrower  at  the  top  than  at  the  base  (as  would  be   expected  from  Art.  21),  but  the  dotted 
lines  show  that  the  narrowing  is  all  at  the  right-hand  side,  while  in  the  Z  it  is  all  at  the  left- 
hand  side. 


SPECIAL   DETAILS   OF   FORM  19 

When  two  lines  join  at  an  acute  angle,  as  in  the  A,  M,  N,  V,  W,  and  Z,  the  junction  is 
made  so  that  the  lines  combine  at  the  limiting  line  in  a  width  equal  to  the  standard  thickness 
of  stem.     Thus  the  V  is  not  pointed  at  the  base,  but  is  as  wide  at  that  point  as  is  the  F,  T,  or 
Y.     It  is  perfectly  easy  to  bring  about  this  result  except  in  the  case  of  the  W.     Although  this 
letter  has  no  more  lines  and  angles  than  the  M,  the  requirement  that  the  third  line  shall  be 
parallel  to  the  first,  and  the  fourth  to  the  second,  introduces 
a  condition  \vhichmakes  the  letter  a  difficult  one  to  outline     ,  ~]"l    7T~ 
in  a  predetermined  total  width,  unless  some  special  measures 
be  taken  to  locate  the  position  of  the  angles.     Fig.  4  shows 
how  this   may  be  done.     Having  fixed  the  total  width,  as 
shown  by  dotted  lines,  place  points  at  1  and  2,  fixing  the 
required  thickness  of  the  extreme  branches  of  the  letter  on     3    :  =  i    M-v    (^ 
the  upper  limiting  line.     Then  place  points  at  3,  bisecting 
the  space  between  1  and  2.     Bisect  again  the  spaces  between     A  "f^I "JC^ ~T^f   (<? ~~O ~~ 
1  and  3  and  2  and  3,  giving  points  4  and  5.     From  these        -L^_k_A_j^l_iOl.  _<^_ 
drop    verticals   to  the  lower  limiting  line,  giving  points    6  Fig.  4 

and  7.     On  eacli  side  of   these  lay  off  the  required   width 
for   the   junctions,    and   outline   the   letter   by   joining   points   as   suggested   in   the   figure. 

Although  the  M  does  not  present  special  difficulties,  the  method  of  pointing  in  advance  of 
outlining  may  be  employed  to  advantage,  as  suggested  in  line  2,  Fig.  4. 

By  following  the  methods  given  in  Fig.  4,  no  trouble  will  be  experienced  in  forming  the  S. 

If  the  S  is  wide  compared  with  its  height,  proceed  as  shoAvn  in  line  3,  first  fixing  the 
thickness  of  the  stroke  by  two  short  dashes  placed  slightly  above  the  center  between  the  limit- 


20  UPRIGHT   AND   INCLINED   GOTHIC   LETTERS 

ing  lines,  then  adding  other  parts  of  the  outline  as  shown  in  the  progressive  stages.     If  the 
S  is  narrow,  the  progressive  stages  may  occur  as  shown  in  line  4. 

36.  Weight  of  Pencil  Lines  to  be  used  in  Outlining.  Before  attempting  to  outline  letters 
of  any  style,  note  the  effect  of  a  heavy  outline  on  a  letter  that  is  afterward  blacked  in  solid, 
either  with  pencil  or  ink.  Fig.  5  shows  light  outlining  in  the 
first  line,  and  heavy  in  the  second.  The  proportions  in  the  two 
cases,  however,  do  not  seem  essentially  different,  because  when  let- 
ters are  in  outline  only,  the  areas  by  which  the  eye  judges  pro- 
portions are  those  included  by  the  inner  edges  of  the  outline.  Lines 
3  and  4  are  reproductions  of  lines  1  and  2  respectively,  except  that 
they  are  now  blacked  in.  These  last  two  lines,  when  compared  witn 
each  other,  show  a  distinct  difference  in  ratio  of  thickness  of  lines 
to  heights  and  widths  of  the  letters.  The  reason  for  this  is  that 
proportion  in  this  case  is  based  upon  the  black  areas,  and  these  cor- 
respond to  those  included  by  the  outer  edges  of  the  original  outlining. 
Until  the  student  appreciates  this  fact,  he  is  disappointed  to  find 
that  letters  which  look  well-proportioned  when'  in  pencil  outline  look  heavy  and  clumsy  after- 
being  blacked  in. 

For  outlining  letters  that  are  to  be  finished  solid,  two  courses  suggest  themselves  from  the 
above  considerations.  The  first  is  to  use  a  moderately  heavy  outline,  but  to  make  the  members 
of  the  letters  appear  rather  slender,  knowing  that  when  the  filling-in  has  been  completed  the 
members  will  appear  much  heavier.  The  second  method  is  to  make  the  outline  so  fine  that 


GOTH1C-FOR   REFERENCE 


5  5  5s  5 

,3. 


6  5z         5 


5        5j        5 


5     j-  5      |        8  5 


5        52        8          6  5 


i  5 
2 


-54 


171BSQ 

4f         5         4|         5 


Plate  III 


AMOUNT   OF   INCLINATION  23 

proportions  will  be  essentially  the  same  whether  judged  by  the  inside  or  outside  edges.  Until 
the  student  has  acquired  a  good  idea  of  proportion  it  will  be  much  safer  for  him  to  follow  the 
second  method,  which  leads  also  to  neatness  and  carefulness  of  execution. 

37.  Gothic  Letters  and  Figures  for  Reference.     For  the  purpose  of  easy  reference,  Plate  IV 
is  added,  showing  the  letters  and  figures  in  order. 

INCLINED   GOTHIC,   PLATE   IV 

38.  Uses  of   Inclined   Gothic.     While  for  titles,  or  other  purposes,  where  several  lines 
of   words   are   used,   the    upright   form   is   more   suitable,  the    inclined  form  is  much  used 
in  "one-line  titles"  or  "sub-titles,"  and  in  prominent  notes,  as  shown  in  the  last  two  lines 
of  Plate  IV.     The  upright  form  is  always  suitable  for  these  purposes,  but  if  it  is  used  for  the 
title  of  a  drawing,  a  pleasing  variety  is  obtained  by  using  the  inclined  form  for  at  least  a 
portion  of  the  lettering  in  the  body  of  the  drawing. 

Many  draftsmen  find  it  easier  to  do  good  work  with  the  inclined  form  than  Avith  the 
upright.  This  is  probably  the  result  of  education  rather  than  of  any  inherent  difficulty  in 
the  upright  form. 

39.  Amount  of  Inclination.     The   exact   amount   of   inclination    is   not  of   great   impor- 
tance, but  it  is  necessary  that  uniformity  of  inclination  must  be  maintained. 

The  inclination  or  slant  used  in  this  book  is  shown  at  (a),  Plate  IV. 

It  is  obtained  by  laying  off  three  units  on  a  horizontal  line  and  eight  of  the  same  units 
on  a  vertical  dropped  from  the  left-hand  end  of  the  first  line,  and  joining  the  extreme  points. 


24  UPRIGHT  AND   INCLINED   GOTHIC   LETTERS 

The  slant  line  thus  drawn  makes  an  angle  of  about  69|°  with  the  horizontal.  Parallel  to  this 
are  to  be  drawn  all  lines  of  the  inclined  letters  which  correspond  to  vertical  lines  of  the  upright 
form. 

40.  Transition  from  Upright  to  Inclined  Gothic.  Although  the  vertical  lines  of  the  upright 
form  suffer  a  change  of  direction  in  the  transition  to  the  inclined  form,  the  horizontal  lines 
still  remain  horizontal.  The  letters  of  this  form,  then,  are  not  simply  those  of  the  upright 
form  rotated  through  a  few  degrees,  but  are  essentially  a  new  form,  though  still  the  same 
"  style  "  as  the  upright. 

Letters  formed  of  straight  lines  will  be  found  easy  to  draw,  but  the  curves  need  a  little 
preliminary  study.  With  drawing  instruments  construct  an  approximate  ellipse,  as  shown  at 
(£),  Plate  IV.  Divide  its  vertical  axis  into  several  parts,  and  through  the  points  of  division 
draw  indefinite  horizontal  lines  to  the  right.  Intersecting  the  latter,  draw  a  slant  line 
as  shown  at  (<?).  Lay  off  a',  6',  etc.,  equal  respectively  to  a,  5,  etc.,  of  (5),  and  through  the 
points  thus  determined  draw  the  curve. 

Although  the  long  axis  of  (6)  is  an  axis  of  symmetry,  the  slant  line  through  (<?)  is  not. 
It  is  seen  that  the  curve,  when  referred  to  the  slant  line,  is  rather  flat  in  the  upper  left-  and 
lower  right-hand  portions,  while  in  the  lower  left-  and  upper  right-hand  portions  it  is  full 
and  well  rounded.  The  highest  and  lowest  points  are  where  the  slant  line  intersects  the 
upper  and  lower  limiting  lines  respectively. 

This  curve  should  be  practiced  with  a  soft  pencil  or  chalk  before  attempting  to  draw 
letters  containing  curves. 


6j  41  Si          4}          5?^         5  5  5|        • 


ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRk 
5TUVWXYZ8  23456785k 


SECTIONAL  PLAN.    ELEV56 
1:2530    4^-FT. 


_4.. 


Plate  IV 


MODIFIED  INCLINED  GOTHIC  27 

41.  Curves  of  Letters  are  Portions  of  the  0.     The   closed   curve   shown   at  (<?)   is   the 
proper  form  for  the  inclined  O,  and  all  curves  which  form  portions  of  other  letters,  except 
the  S,  are  in  form  portions  of  the  O.     Thus  the  curved  part  of  the  U  is  the  lower  half  of  the 
O,  and  the  curve  of  the  P  is  the  right-hand  half  of  a  small  O.     The  figure  8  (Plate  IV)  is 
two  small  O's,  which  are  broad  compared  with  their  height,  but  which  exhibit  the  essential 
characteristics,  —  being  well  rounded  in  the  upper  right-  and  lower  left-hand  portions,  and 
comparatively  flat  in  the  upper  left-  and  lower  right-hand  portions. 

If  the  curves  of  the  S  were  made  to  follow  the  corresponding  portions  of  the  O,  it  would 
be  found  that  the  curves  of  tht  latter,  especially  the  flatter  ones,  would  not  be  at  all  suitable 
for  forming  an  S  of  graceful  form. 

42.  Thickness  of  Stems.     A  comparison  of  Plates  III  and  IV  shows  that  for  the  same 
height  of  letters,  the  same  width,  measured  horizontally,  may  be  used  for  the  same  letters. 
But,  taking  the  I  as  an  example,  it  is  seen  that  since  the  letter  is  no  longer  perpendicular  to 
the  limiting  lines,  its  actual  length  is  somewhat  greater  than  that  of  the  I  of  the  upright  form. 
For  this  reason  the  thickness  of  the  lines  is  increased  from  two-thirds  to  three-fourths  unit. 

This  appearance  of  slightly  greater  height  leads  to  a  rule  often  given,  that  when  upright 
and  inclined  letters  are  used  in  the  same  line  (as  very  seldom  happens  upon  drawings),  the 
upper  limiting  line  for  the  inclined  form  should  be  slightly  below  tfiat  for  the  upright  form. 

43.  Modified  Inclined  Gothic.     It   is  common,   especially  in  lettering  smaller   than   that 
used  for  the  title  of  a  drawing,  to  use  letters  and  figures  differing  slightly  from  those  shown 
in  the  first  three  lines  of  Plate  IV.     These  differences  are  shown  in  the  second  alphabet  and  in 
the  two  lines  at  the  bottom  of  the  plate,  and  may  be  summarized  as :  — 


28  UPRIGHT   AND   INCLINED   GOTHIC   LETTERS 

1.  Letters  narrower  than  those  of  the  first  alphabet. 

2.  Letters  having  a  slight  increase  in  width  of  the  ends  of  many  strokes  that  terminate 
at  the   limiting   lines.     This  increase   should    be  but  slight;   otherwise  the    letters  cease    to 
belong  properly  to  the  Gothic  style,  and  do  not  come  under  any  other  standard  style. 

3.  Certain   letters  and  figures  in   which   one  or  both    free  ends  terminate  horizontally, 
instead  of  being  portions  of  the  O.     This  difference  may  be  observed  in  the  upper  end  of  C, 
G,  2,  and  6,  the  lower  end  of  3,  5,  and  9,  and  both  ends  of  S. 

The  first  variation  is  often  dictated  by  a  small  distance,  horizontally,  available  for  the 
lettering,  and  the  necessity  of  making  it  prominent.  As  stated  in  Art.  27,  the  width  of  let- 
ters as  compared  with  the  height  is  not  standard,  but  is  largely  a  matter  of  taste. 

The  second  variation,  when  skillfully  executed,  gives  a  pleasing  elasticity  to  the  outline, 
but  it  must  not  be  resorted  to  because  of  inability  to  draw  the  straight,  clear-cut  outlines  of 
the  first  alphabet. 

The  third  variation  is  least  justifiable,  and  is  objected  to  by  some  designers. 

44.  Exercises.  Plates  II  and  IV  should  now  be  drawn  in  accordance  with  the  dimensions 
in  their  margins. 


CHAPTER  IV 

SPACING 

45.  The  Problem.     Thus  far  consideration  has  been  given  almost  wholly  to  the  design  of 
individual  letters  without  regard  to  their  combination  to  form  words.     However  well  designed 
and  drawn  letters  may  be,  if  they  are  not  placed  at  proper  distances  from  one  another  when 
combined  into  words,  the  result  is  inharmonious. 

With  twenty-six  different  letters  as  elements,  and  an  almost  endless  variety,  of  combina- 
tions of  these  letters,  the  problem  of  spacing  is  not  a  simple  one.  Rules  have  been  worked  out 
for  its  solution,  but  it  is  better  to  regard  the  problem  as  one  to  be  solved  by  the  exercise  of 
good  taste. 

46.  Some  Guiding  Principles  in  Spacing.     It  is  not  difficult  to  arrive  at  some  general  princi- 
ples which  will  be  helpful  in  the  solution  of  all  problems  in  spacing.     The  thing  to  be  secured 
is  to  distribute  the  letters  in  such  a  way  that  there  will  be  an  appearance;  of  evenness  in 
the  words  formed,  just  as  a  picket  fence  is  easily  seen  as  one  coherent  thing,  rather  than  some- 
thing which  cannot  be  comprehended  until  we  have  examined  the  individual  pickets.     But 
letters,  unlike  pickets,  are  not  all  alike.     If  they  were,  we  should  simply  place  them  at  uniform 
distances  apart. 

In  Fig.  6,  line  1,  the  letters  are  at  equal  distances  measured  between  the  nearest  adjacent 
points.  It  is  seen  at  once  that  the  letters  appear  to  be  in  two  groups,  HIGHL  and  AND.  In 
line  2  an  attempt  is  made  to  remedy  this  by  bringing  the  L  and  A  toward  each  other  until 

29 


30  SPACING 

they  almost  touch.  But  the  difficulty  is  not  overcome,  and  would  not  be  if  these  letters  were 
brought  in  contact. 

It  is  plain  that  the  trouble  lies  in  the  great  distance  which  separates  the  tops  of  the  L  and 
A.  The  unbroken  white  area  between  these  letters  is  great  as  compared  with  that  between 
any  other  two  adjacent  letters,  this  area  being  space  bounded  on  two  sides  by  the  outlines  of 
the  letters,  and  on  the  other  two  by  the  limiting  lines. 

This  leads  to  the  first  and  most  important  principle 

I  r"l  I  fi  r-1 1       /Ik  Y\  ^J  in  spacing ;  namely,  that  the  areas  between  letters  must 

be  approximately  equal.     Referring  again  to  Fig.  6,  we 
2  LJ  I  f*  I— 1 1       A  Kl  1^  note  tnat  tne  L  and  A  in  line  2  are  as  near  together 

•  "  ^"^  *    '  ™~*    *'  ^  ^^  as  they  can  well  be,  so  the  area  between  them  cannot 

•  |  i  f+  |    |  I        A    K.  I  I""\         ^e  re(luced.     It  becomes  necessary,  then,  to  increase  the 
II  I  ^J  I    I  I      f^,  |\|  L/         spaces  between  the  other  letters  in  order  to  secure  an 

^^  approximate  equivalence   of  white  areas  between   let- 

4  |— l   I  ^j  I— I  /\  ^    |j    ters.     There  should  not  be  the  same  amount  of  increase 

at  all  points,  however,  as  may  be  seen  by  further  study 

'^"  of  line  1.     Between  A  and  N  considerable  area  already 

exists  because  of  the  form  of  the  A,  and  the  space  between  these  letters  needs  no  increase. 
The  only  other  letter  in  the  word  which,  by  its  form,  gives  a  considerable  area  between  itself 
and  its  neighbors  is  the  G.  But  the  apparent  spaces  between  the  I  and  G  and  the  G  and  H 
are  not  so  great  as  the  space  between  the  A  and  N ;  hence,  these  first-named  spaces  must  be 
increased.  The  appearance  of  greatest  crowding,  however,  is  between  those  letters  whose 
adjacent  sides  are  straight  and  parallel  ;  namely,  H  and  I,  H  and  L,  N  and  D.  Here  the 


GUIDING  PRINCIPLES   IN   SPACING  31 

apparent  intermediate  areas  are  due  only  to  the  actual  linear  distances  between  the  letters,  with 
no  help  from  the  forms  of  the  letters.  The  areas  between  these  letters,  then,  must  be  consid- 
erably increased  in  order  to  make  them  even  approximately  equal  to  the  area  between  A  and 
N,  to  say  nothing  of  that  between  L  and  A. 

Before  we  pass  to  line  3,  where  these  changes  are  made,  another  point  must  be  noted. 
Remember  meanwhile  that  in  line  1  the  linear  distances  between  the  nearest  adjacent  points  of 
the  letters  were  made  equal.  This  might  lead  to  the  supposition  that  the  spaces  between  I  and 
G  and  between  G  and  H  should  be  increased  in  like  degree,  since  the  I  on  one  side  of  G  and 
the  first  stroke  of  the  II  on  the  other  side  are  straight  vertical  lines.  This  would  be  true  were 
it  not  for  the  opening  in  the  curve  on  the  right  side  of  the  G,  the  effect  of  which  is  that  the 
white  area  lying  within  the  outline  of  the  letter  supplements  that  which  is  properly  between  it 
and  the  H.  Therefore  the  space  between  G  and  H  does  not  need  to  be  increased  so  much  as 
does  that  between  I  and  G. 

In  line  3  are  shown  the  spacings  suggested  by  the  arguments  above.  These  may  be  sum: 
marized  as  follows:  — 

Spaces  between  L  and  A  and  between  A  and  N  remain  unchanged  so  as  not  to  increase 
the  already  large  areas. 

Spaces  between  H  and  I,  H  and  L,  N  and  D,  are  considerably  increased,  and  by  equal 
amounts. 

Spaces  between  I  and  G  and  between  G  and  H  are  somewhat  increased,  the  latter  less  than 
the  former  because  of  the  break  in  the  curved  outline  of  the  G. 

The  result  in  line  3  is  not  ideal,  since  the  area  between  L  and  A  is  still  obviously 
greater  than  that  between  other  letters.  But  if  the  letters  were  separated  so  that  all  the 


32  SPACING 

intermediate  areas  were  apparently  equal,  the  whole  would  have  a  disagreeably  loose,  disjointed 
appearance,  and  it  would  be  seen  that  a  compromise  is  necessary  in  such  a  case  as  the  present 
one.  It  will  now  be  apparent  why,  in  the  first  general  principle  given  above,  it  was  said  that 
the  areas  between  letters  must  be  approximately  equal ;  and  in  an  extreme  case  like  the 
present  one,  involving  an  L  followed  by  an  A,  the  approximation  must  be  somewhat  rough. 

Line  4  of  Fig.  6  shows  a  still  wider  spacing  between  letters  except  L  and  A.  This 
spacing  is  as  wide  as  one  would  generally  be  justified  in  using.  The  appearance  of  the  word 
as  a  whole  is  improved. 

47.  All   the   Words  in  a  Line  must  be  Considered.     If  a  line  of  a  title  contains  two  or 
more  words,  all  these  must  be  considered  Avhen  deciding  upon  the  spacing.     Thus,  suppose  a 
line  to  consist  of  the  words  MOTIVE  POWER.     The  letters  here  are  of  such  forms  that 
narrow  or  wide  spacing  will  suit  either  word  equally  well.      But  in  the  words    GROUND 
PLAN,  while  either  narrow  or  wide  spacing  might  be  used  for  the  first  word,  the  letters  in 
the  second  one  are  of  such  form  as  to  dictate  wide  spacing ;  therefore  wide  spacing  should  be 
used  for  both  words. 

48.  Summary  of  Hints  on  Spacing  of  Letters :  — 

1.  Areas  between  letters  should  be  approximately  equal. 

2.  The  smallest  spaces  (measured  parallel  to  limiting  lines)  will  occur  in  connection  with 
letters  of  such  form  that  intermediate  areas  will  necessarily  be  large.     Thus  we  expect  F,  L, 
and  P  to  be  followed  closely  by  the  succeeding  letters ;  J  to  have  the  preceding  letter  drawn 
near  it,  and  A,  T,  V,  W,  and  Y  to  have  both  the  preceding  and  succeeding  letters  near  them. 


EQUIVALENT   AREAS   AND  FORMS   OF  LETTERS  33 

In  some   combinations,  as  AV,  WA,  the  adjacent  branches  of  neighboring  letters  may  some- 
times actually  overlap. 

3.  Letters  with  curved  outlines,  such  as  C,  G,  and  O,  will  require  moderate  spacing,  since 
their  forms  will  insure  fairly  large  intermediate  areas. 

4.  Vertical  sides  of  letters,  as  in  H,  M,  N,  and  the  left  side  of  B,  D,  E,  etc.,  call  for  wide 
spacing. 

5.  If  the  side  of  a  letter  is  a  broken  curve,  as  in  C,  G,  and  S,  the  area  lying  within  the 
outline  has  a  modifying  influence  upon  the  area  outside  the  letter  on  the  side  where  the  break 
occurs,  and  the  latter  area  need  not  be  quite  so  large  as  would  otherwise  be  required. 

6.  Finally,  each  combination  must  be  considered  as  a  problem  in  itself,  and  the  ideal  of  a 
smooth,  uniform,  and  easily  legible  word  or  line  of  \fords  must  be  kept  in  mind. 

49.  Equivalent  Areas  and  Forms  of  Letters.  It  may  be  stated  here  that  the  idea  involved  in 
maintaining  approximately  equal  white  areas  between  letters  is  carried  into  the  design  of  let- 
ters themselves.  This  is  most  plainly  seen  in  the  A,  where  the  horizontal  bar  is  placed  consid- 
erably below  the  middle  of  the  height  of  the  letter.  If  this  bar  were  placed  midway  between 
the  limiting  lines,  the  triangular  area  above  it  and  the  quadrilateral  area  below  it  (the  lower 
limiting  line  forming  one  side)  would  be  so  very  different  in  magnitude  that  the  letter  would 
be  badly  proportioned. 

An  apparent  contradiction  of  this  principle  is  seen  in  B,  H,  etc.,  where  the  middle  hori- 
zontal line  is  above  the  center  between  the  limiting  lines,  thus  unbalancing  the  equivalence  of 
areas.  In  the  B  the  upper  portion  is  contracted  horizontally,  thus  introducing  a  further  differ- 
ence between  the  two  included  areas.  But  in  these  cases  there  is  the  element  of  stability  to 


34  SPACING 

consider  (Art.  21),  the  lower  area  being  regarded  as  a  base  upon  which  the  upper  area,  or 
superstructure,  securely  rests. 

50.  Spaces  between  Words.     The   average  space   between  words  should  be  about   three 
times  the  average  space  between  letters.     Spaces  will  vary,  however,  for  the  same  reasons  that 
spaces  between  letters  vary,  and  each  case  must  be  considered  as  a  problem  in  itself.     A  word 
looks  slightly  more  prominent  if  the  spaces  between  it  and  its  neighbors  are  wide.     But  the 
chief  aims  are  to  give  sufficient  space,  so  that  the  eye  readily  discerns  the  individual  words,  and 
also  to  preserve  an  appearance  of  uniformity. 

51.  Spacing  in  Connection  with  Punctuation.     If   a   mark  of   punctuation  is   to   be  used 
between  words,  extra  space  must  be  allowed  for  it.     The  mark  belongs  to  the  word  which 
precedes  it,  and  is  placed  nearer  to  that  word  than  to  the  one  which  follows.     In  the  case  of 
the  comma  and  semicolon  the  space  between  the  mark  and  the  following  word  should  be  as 
great  as  would  be  the  space  between  the  words  if  no  mark  of  punctuation  were  used.     The 
colon  and  period  require  wider  spacing. 

52.  Examples.     As  examples  for  practice  in  spacing,  the  following  words  are  suggested, 
the  letters  to  be  all  capitals  about  one-fourth  inch  high:  hilt,  late,  waver,  room. 


CHAPTER  V 

WORD   SKETCHING   AND   TITLE   BUILDING 

53.  The  Value  of  Preliminary  Sketching.     In  combining  letters  to  form  words  it  is  desir- 
able that,  as  far  as  possible,  the  word  or  line  of  words  be  evolved  as  a  whole.     The  result  is 
then  more  spontaneous,  free,  and  homogeneous,  and  rapidity  of  execution  is  secured. 

54.  The  Title  taken  as  an  Example.     Lest  it  should  appear  that  the  only  aim  and  end  of 
lettering  is  the  design  and  execution  of  titles,  it  is  proper  to  state  that  in  many  cases  other 
lettering  on  drawings  is  of  so  formal  a  nature  as  to  require  the  care  and  methods  here  indicated 
under  the  general  head  of  titles.     But  it  is  convenient  to  use  the  title  by  way  of  illustration 
and  example,  since  the  considerations  and  methods  pertaining  to  it  will  suffice  to  cover  the 
necessities  of  other  lettering. 

55.  Nature  of  the  Title.     The  amount  of  information  contained  in  a  title  will  depend  on 
the  nature  and  relative  importance  of  the  drawing  to  which  it  is  attached.      But  in  general  the 
title  is  a  group  of  words  which  answers  the  following  questions  concerning  the  thing  shown 
by  the  drawing :    what,  where,  by  whom,  how  large,  when  ?     Thus  the  title  of  a  map,  answer- 
ing these  questions  in  the  order  given,  might  be  :  A  MAP  OP  THE  PUBLIC  GARDEN,  BOSTON, 
MASS.     Horace  T.  Banks,  Surveyor.     Scale  1  inch  =  200 feet.     September,  1905. 

Many  plans  are  made  under  the  auspices  of  a  city  engineer,  a  commission,  or  a  board  of 
public  works.  In  such  a  case  an  official  seal  often  appears  at  the  head  of  the  title  showing 
where  and  by  whom  the  work  is  done. 

35 


36  WORD   SKETCHING  AND   TITLE   BUILDING 

56.  Arrangement  of  Words  in  Titles.  In  every  title  there  are  some  words  of  more  im- 
portance than  others,  and  these  are  the  words  which  indicate  what  is  shown  by  the  drawing. 
Assume  the  following  words  for  a  brief  title  :  PLAN  SHOWING  LOCATION  OF  BORINGS  AND 
SOUNDINGS.  SCALE  1  IN.  =  40  FT.  1907.  The  words  of  obvious  importance  are  Borings  and 
Soundings.  Since  the  drawing  does  not  show  the  borings  and  soundings  themselves,  but  their 
location,  the  words  to  be  given  emphasis  are  Location  of  Borings  and  Soundings.  The  other 
words  are  of  minor  importance.  The  scale  and  date  generally  appear  as  parts  of  titles,  and, 
although  very  necessary  parts,  they  are  made  inconspicuous. 

The  words  composing  a  title  are  arranged  in  lines  in  accordance  with  (1)  the  importance 
of  the  ideas  expressed;  (2)  a  well-proportioned  outline  for  the  title  as  a  whole.  The  words 
given  above  if  arranged  in  accordance  with  (1)  would  appear  thus  :  — 


PLAN    SHOWING 
LOCATION    OF    BORINGS    AND    SOUNDINGS 

SCALE  I   IN.  =  40  FT.    I9O7 


57.  Means  of  giving  Prominence.  A  word  or  line  of  words  may  be  given  prominence  by 
(1)  the  use  of  large  or  heavy-faced  letters;  (2)  making  wide  spaces  between  letters;  (3)  mak- 
ing wide  spaces  between  the  word  or  line  in  question  and.  the  adjacent  lines,  if  there  are  any. 
All  these  methods  may  be  used  at  once.  The  usual  way  of  securing  prominence  for  the  impor- 


OUTLINE   OF  THE   TITLE  37 

tant  words  of  a  title  is  by  the  use  of  larger  letters  than  are  used  for  the  less  prominent  words. 
In  accordance  with  this  idea  the  words  given  in  Art.  56  would  appear:  — 


PLAN    SHOWING 

LOCATION    OF    BORINGS    AND    SOUNDINGS 

SCALE  I  IN.  =  40  FT.    I9O7 


58.  The  Outline  of  the  Title  as  a  Whole.  The  shape  and  proportions  of  the  figure  which 
may  be  drawn  circumscribing  a  well-proportioned  title  will  vary  greatly.  Sometimes  the 
available  space  on  the  drawing  will  determine  the  general  form.  If  the  title  must  contain 
many  ideas,  necessitating  many  lines  of  words,  it  may  be  longer  from  top  to  bottom  than  from 
side  to  side.  In  most  cases,  however,  the  conditions  will  permit  an  arrangement  of  words  such 
that  a  figure  closely  circumscribing  the  title  is  an  ellipse  with  its  long  axis  horizontal.  The 
best  proportion  is  that  iri  which  the  circumscribing  ellipse  has  its  short  axis  three-fifths  the 
length  of  the  long  one. 

The  title  as  arranged  in  Art.  57  might  be  circumscribed  by  an  ellipse,  but  it  would  be  one 
with  the  minor  axis  very  much  shorter  than  the  major  axis.  Thus,  while  the  arrangement 
is  a  symmetrical  one,  it  is  not  in  good  proportion.  A  better  proportion  may  be  secured  without 
sacrificing  the  prominence  of  the  important  words  by  breaking  the  long  line  into  two  shorter 


38  WORD   SKETCHING  AND  TITLE   BUILDING 

ones,  keeping  the  letters  of  the  same  size  for  the  two  lines,  and  by  placing  the  scale  and  date 
on  separate  lines.  By  this  means  the  major  axis  of  the  circumscribing  ellipse  is  shortened  and 
the  short  axis  is  lengthened.  Thus  the  final  arrangement  will  be:  — 

PLAN  SHOWING 

LOCATION   OF   BORINGS 
AND   SOUNDINGS 

SCALE  I  IN.  =  40  FT. 
I9O7 

The  wording  of  a  title  and  the  order  of  words  should,  as  far  as  possible,  be  such  that 
the  important  ideas  may  be  brought  out  in  comparatively  large  letters,  and  so  that  the  whole 
may  be  arranged  within  a  well-proportioned  circumscribing  figure;  or,  as  is  commonly  said, 
so  that  the  words  will  "  compose  "  well.  Notice  that  in  the  above  example  the  "  composi- 
tion" would  not  have  been  so  easy  if  the  order  of  the  important  words  had  been  Location 
of  Soundings  and  Borings,  for  then  the  principal  line,  which  is  already  long  enough,  would 
have  two  more  letters  than  the  present  long  line  contains. 

Sometimes  the  only  words  which  can  suitably  be  used  as  the  important  words  are 
so  few  and  short  that  it  is  not  easy  to  make  them  extend  to  the  outline  of  the  circumscribing 
figure  without  drawing  the  letters  too  large  to  look  well  with  the  letters  in  adjacent  lines. 
Plate  XVI  shows  a  case  in  point,  where  the  words  "Waste  Weir"  are  shown  in  "extended" 


METHODS   OF  GROUPING  39 

letters;  that  is,  letters  with  the  width  greater  than  the  height.  The  use  of  extended  letters 
is  generally  the  solution  of  this  kind  of  difficulty,  as  it  gives  great  length  of  line  without 
making  the  letters  look  too  large. 

Another  case  in  point  is  shown  on  Plate  XV.  This  case  is  from  actual  practice,  where 
there  were  several  drawings  in  a  set,  arid  it  was  desirable  to  keep  the  general  wording  of 
the  titles  uniform,  and  where  the  words  "  Sudbury  Dam "  were  the  only  suitable  ones  to 
describe  that  particular  drawing. 

It  must  not  be  supposed  that  every  line  of  a  title  should  extend,  even  approximately, 
to  the  figure  which  circumscribes  the  title  as  a  whole.  Thus,  if  a  title  were  to  be  composed 
of  the  following  words:  Proposal  for  constructing  the  Superstructure  of  Grate  Chamber  No.  3, 
Cambridge,  Mass.,  the  unimportant  words  for  and  of  might  be  placed  each  in  a  line  by  itself, 
in  which  case  very  small  letters  would  be  used  as  compared  with  those  used  for  the  more 
important  words. 

59.  Methods  of  Grouping  Parts  of  Titles.  It  will  be  noted  that  if  a  vertical  line  is  drawn 
bisecting  any  line  of  words  in  the  title  shown  in  Art.  58  it  will  bisect  all  the  other  lines. 
Such  a  vertical  line  is  obviously  the  short  axis  of  the  circumscribing  ellipse,  and  is  an  axis  of 
symmetry  of  the  title.  One  of  the  problems  in  title  building  is  the  placing  of  the  lines  so  that 
all  will  be  bisected  by  a  common  line. 

Three  conditions  may  be  recognized  under  which  titles  are  made,  each  requiring  or  per- 
mitting a  different  method  of  procedure. 

FIRST.  When  the  drawing  is  on  tracing  cloth  or  other  transparent  material,  the  lines  of 
the  title  may  very  easily  be  arranged  in  proper  relation  to  each  other  as  follows:  first,  sketch 


40  WORD   SKETCHING  AND   TITLE   BUILDING 

them  on  a  separate  piece  of  paper,  taking  care  only  to  have  the  letters  of  proper  size,  properly 
spaced,  and  the  lines  of  suitable  length.  Then,  having  marked  the  center  of  each  line,  place 
the  paper  under  the  tracing  cloth  with  the  longest  line  in  the  desired  position,  and  trace  the 
outlines  of  the  letters  of  that  line.  Draw  a  vertical  center  line  in  pencil  through  the  traced 
line  of  letters.  Shift  the  tracing  over  the  paper  so  that  another  line  of  the  lettering  is  brought 
with  its  center  coincident  with  the  center  line  on  the  tracing,  at  the  same  time  securing  the 
desired  space  between  the  line  already  traced  and  the  one  about  to  be  traced.  Treat  all  the 
remaining  lines  in  the  same  way. 

SECOND.  When  an  elaborate  title  is  to  be  made  for  a  drawing  on  opaque  paper,  the  lines 
may  be  sketched  on  tracing  paper  and  transferred  to  the  drawing  in  their  proper  relative  posi- 
tions. The  transferring  may  be  done  by  blackening  the  back  of  the  paper  upon  which  the 
lettering  is  sketched,  using  a  soft  pencil  held  flatwise.  Then  go  over  the  outlines  with  a  sharp, 
hard  point,  after  having  placed  the  paper  in  its  proper  position  upon  the  drawing;  thus  the 
outlines  will  be  transferred  in  light  lines.  If  there  is  much  of  this  transferring  to  be  done,  it 
is  better  to  blacken  the  whole  of  one  side  of  a  piece  of  thin  paper,  using  a  soft  pencil,  and  slip 
this  sheet,  blackened  side  down,  between  the  drawing  and  the  sheet  containing  the  sketch  to 
be  transferred.  The  firm  pressure  of  a  smooth,  sharp-  point  will  then  transfer  the  outlines  to 
the  drawing.  The  carbon  paper  used  for  duplicating  typewritten  work  should  not  be  employed 
for  this  purpose.  The  outlines  transferred  as  described  are  not  so  sharp  and  true  as  the 
original,  and  usually  require  some  correction  with  a  pencil  before  they  are  inked. 

This  method  allows  the  title  to  be  studied  to  advantage,  as  the  lines  may  be  drawn  on 
separate  slips  of  paper  and  compared  one  with  another  as  to  size  and  style  of  letters  and  spacing 


METHODS   OF   GROUPING 


41 


between  lines.  The  effect  of  several  combinations  may  easily  be  tried  before  putting  any- 
thing upon  the  final  drawing,  which  will  be  kept  free  from  the  disagreeable  effects  of  erasures. 

THIRD.  In  the  majority  of  cases  the  titles  are  not  elaborate,  and  require  no  extended 
study  of  size  and  style  and  spacing.  It  is  desirable  in  such  cases  to  outline  the  letters  as 
quickly  and  directly  as  possible  upon  the  drawing.  A  little  experience,  aided  by  good  taste, 
will  enable  one  to  determine  quickly  the  sizes  and  arrangement  of  parts,  and  the  problem 
becomes  largely  the  drawing  of  the  lines 
so  that  all  will  be  symmetrical  about  a 
common  vertical  center  line. 

The  following  method  may  be  used : 
near  the  lower  edge  of  a  strip  of  paper, 
and  parallel  to  it,  draw  a  set  of  limit- 
ing lines  for  the  longest  line  of  the 
title  (see  Fig.  7).  Between  these  sketch 
the  letters  of  this  longest  line.  The 
sketching  may  be  very  rough,  but  the  Fig.  7 

widths  and  spacing  of  the  letters  should  be  indicated  with  care,  with  occasional  use  of  the  scale  of 
units  if  necessary  to  get  the  widths  approximately  right.  Find  the  center  of  the  line  by 
measurement,  and  draw  a  vertical  line  to  mark  it.  Now  place  this  strip  of  paper  upon  the 
drawing  just  above  the  limiting  lines  to  be  used  for  this  long  line  of  the  title,  with  the  center 
in  line  with  the  desired  position  for  the  center  line  of  the  finished  title.  With  a  2-H  or  3-H 
pencil  sketch  in  the  complete  outlines  of  the  letters  in  their  final  positions,  using  as  a  guide 
the  rough  sketch  above  on  the  strip.  It  is  not  to  be  expected  that  every  letter  will  come 


(   •  Ilk  \!o 

i'..:.\.           -  \V  .. 

i 

3 

42  WOKD   SKETCHING   AND  TITLE   BUILDING 

directly  below  the  rough  sketch  of  its  counterpart,  for  generally  adjustment  will  be  needed  — 
to  the  right  in  some  cases,  to  the  left  in  others  —  so  that  the  line  as  a  whole  will  be  equal  in 
length  to  the  first  sketch. 

In  making  this  final  outline,  avoid  giving  it  too  high  a  finish  at  first.  Go  over  it  in  a 
rather  sketchy  way,  but  always  with  careful  regard  to  proportion  and  spac'ng  of  the  letters. 
It  may  be  necessary  still  further  to  adjust  parts  of  the  line  after  it  has  been  fully  outlined,  and 
then  the  wisdom  of  avoiding  too  careful  a  finish  will  be  apparent.  The  pressure  of  the  pencil 
should  always  be  light,  so  that,  if  erasures  become  necessary,  no  grooves  will  be  left  in  the 
paper  as  the  result  of  heavy  pressure.  When  the  line  looks  satisfactory  as  a  whole,  go  over  it 
again  with  a  slightly  harder  pencil  and  smooth  out  rough  places  in  the  outlining,  which  should 
be  clear  and  sharp,  especially  if  the  work  is  to  be  inked.  Some  portions  of  the  outlining  may 
have  been  so  rough  as  to  require  nearly  complete  erasing  before  the  final  smoothing  is  done. 
For  this,  use  a  very  soft  rubber  such  as  the  Hardmuth  eraser,  or  a  piece  of  "  art  gum." 

It  is  often  unnecessary  that  the  line  first  drawn  shall  have  its  middle  point  exactly  beneath 
the  middle  of  the  rough  sketch,  in  which  case  no  time  need  be  spent  in  adjustments  except  those 
required  for  proper  widths  of  letters  and  spaces  ;  therefore  there  is  greatest  economy  of  time 
in  selecting  the  longest  line  as  the  first  one  to  be  drawn.  Through  its  middle  point  draw  a 
vertical  line,  which  will  be  the  vertical  axis  of  symmetry  for  the  title.  The  remaining  lines  are 
drawn  by  the  method  used  for  the  first  line,  care  being  taken  that  the  middle  of  each  shall 
be  at  the  vertical  axis  of  symmetry. 

When  a  little  skill  has  been  attained  the  long  line  may  be  drawn  directly  in  place  without 
the  aid  of  the  rough  sketch,  and  the  other  lines  may  be  grouped  about  it  as  above  described. 

Fig.   7  shows  the  process,  and  about  the  proper  degree  of  finish  for  drawing  titles  by  this 


•oh* 


JJL  DETAILS 

OF 

f     BACK  GEARING 

;3r  FOR 

ENGINE  LATHE 

SCALE  3IN.=  1  FT. 
1907 


Plate  V 


EXERCISE,   PLATE   V 


45 


third  method.  The  upper  line  is  the 
first  rough  sketch;  the  first  half  of  the 
second  line  is  the  preliminary  stage 
of  the  final  outline;  and  the  last  half 
is  the  last  stage,  ready  for  inking. 

By  the  use  of  this  third  method 
an  accurate  idea  of  the  form  of  a 
title  may  be  gained  before  any  of 
the  final  penciling  is  done.  As 
soon  as  the  rough  preliminary  pen- 
ciling is  finished,  giving  the  length 
of  the  several  lines,  these  may  be 
blocked  out  as  shown  in  Fig.  8. 
An  advantage  in  this  blocking  out 
is  that  it  affords  an  excellent  basis 
for  choosing  suitable  widths  of  spaces 
between  the  lines.  Figs.  8  and  9 
show  plainly  the  relation  between 
blocking  out  and  finished  work. 

See  also  Art.  82. 

60.  Plate  V  may  now  be  drawn, 
using  the  third  method  given  above. 


Fig.  8 

PLAN  SHOWING 

LOCATION  OF  BORINGS 

AND  SOUNDINGS 

SCALE  IIN.=  40FT. 
1907 

Fig.  9 


CHAPTER  VI 

ROMAN   LETTERS    AND    FIGURES 

61.  Comparison  of  Modern  Roman  with  Gothic  Letters.     A  comparison  of  Plates  II  and  VI 
shows  that  the  Roman  letters  and  figures  differ  from  the  Gothic  in  several  particulars,  the 
most  prominent  difference  being  that  the  Roman  style  involves  combinations  of  light  and 
heavy  lines,  whereas  the  Gothic  style  has  all  its  lines  of  uniform  thickness. 

In  the  Roman  letters  all  of  the  straight  vertical  strokes,  and  most  of  the  straight  inclined 
ones  ending  in  the  limiting  lines,  are  terminated  by  short  horizontal  lines,  as  at  the  base  of  the 
F,  or  by  extending  horizontal  members  across  the  stem,  as  at  the  top  of  the  F.  These  short 
finishing  lines  are  called  "ceriphs"  or  "-spurs." 

The  free  ends  of  horizontal  members  (as  in  E,  F,  and  L)  terminate  in  short  vertical  lines, 
as  do  also  the  free  ends  of  most  curves,  as  in  C,  G,  and  S.  These  short  vertical  lines  are  called 
"kerns." 

62.  Width  of  Letters.     The  spurs  have   no   practical  effect  in   modifying   the  apparent 
width  of  letters,  and  the  figures  which  express  units  of  width  do  not  include  the  spurs.     These 
spurs  must  be  considered,  however,  in  spacing,  as  the  spurs  of  two  adjacent  letters  must  not 
touch  each  other.     Hence  this  style  of  letter  must  always  be  spaced  rather  wide. 

Most  of  the  letters  are  of  the  same  width  as  the  corresponding  letters  in  the  Gothic  alpha- 
bet. There  are  two  groups  of  exceptions,  the  P,  O,  L,  and  Q  being  wider,  and  the  A,  M,  N, 

46 


ROMAN 


;    SZ    : 


m  nan  a 

jaJJJiAJ..a.J.iAi.LA].r:j.;..l.i4:  i  S  ! 
:  4  ;  :  5^'   :  5?  ! 

e    ::MM..Z:::  ...Fe.a 


::iiMw  4 

ii:   •  4*  :  :  4^  •'  :  *i  '  :  4^  :  I  4^  I    i  4i  :  I  4    :  :  4i  :    :  4?  :   :  *i  '   :  4  :   :    5   : 


Plate  VI 


THE   FILLET  49 

U,  and  V  narrower  than  in  the  Gothic  alphabet.  Both  groups  of  exceptions  result  from  the 
changes  in  the  areas  included  within  the  strokes  of  the  letters.  Taking  the  O  as  a  type  of 
the  first  group,  it  is  seen  that  since  the  thick  lines  at  the  sides  are  narrowed  to  "  hair"  lines  at  the 
bottom,  the  included  white  area  is  much  longer  compared  with  its  width  than  is  the  case  with 
the  Gothic  O.  The  presence  of  this  long,  narrow  interior  space  tends  to  make  the  letter  as  a 
whole  look  narrower  than  it  really  is ;  consequently  it  is  widened  to  counteract  this  deceptive 
appearance  of  narrowness.  This  is  simply  another  illustration  of  the  principle  illustrated  in 
Fig,  1. 

Taking  the  Roman  V  as  a  type  of  the  second  group,  it  will  be  seen  that  if  this  letter  be 
drawn  with  the  same  outside  width  as  that  of  the  Gothic  V,  the  width  of  the  area  included  be- 
tween the  branches  of  the  Roman  V  is  greater  than  that  of  the  corresponding  area  of  the 
Gothic  V,  because  the  second  branch  of  the  Roman  V  is  a  light  line  instead  of  a  heavy  line 
as  in  the  Gothic  V.  The  result  is  that  the  Roman  letter  looks  too  wide,  and  must  be  drawn  a 
little  narrower  than  the  Gothic  letter  to  preserve  a  proper  proportion.  Similar  changes  in 
width  may  be  observed  among  the  lower-case  letters. 

63.  Width  of  Stroke.  Since  the  fine  lines  are  made  very  fine  in  the  Modern  Roman 
letters,  an  appearance  of 'solidity  is  maintained  by  making  the  heavy  strokes  thick,  one  unit 
being  used  for  the  straight  ones.  Curved  members,  since  they  vary  in  width,  are  made  wider 
in  the  widest  portion  than  the  straight  heavy  members,  but  only  enough  wider  to  make  them 
appear  the  same  width, —  still  another  application  of  the  principle  illustrated  in  Fig.  1. 

64. -The  Fillet.  The  spurs  and  kerns  making  sharp  angles  with  the  members  of  a  letter 
would  give  a  stiff  and  unpleasing  effect.  To  avoid  this,  "fillets,"  with  curved  outlines,  are 


50  BOM  AN   LETTERS    AND   FIGURES 

introduced  at  the  angles.  At  the  spurs  the  fillets  are  very  small,  and  the  curve  does  not 
extend  to  the  end  of  the  spur.  At  the  kerns  the  fillets. are  much  larger,  and  are  drawn 
tangent  to  the  end  of  the  kern,  but  not  tangent  to  the  horizontal  members  unless  the  letters  are 
unusually  wide. 

Not  all  the  angles  in  the  letters  are  filleted,  however.  At  the  bottom  of  the  stem  of  the 
L,  for  instance,  there  is  a  fillet  at  the  left  of  the  stem,  but  none  at  the  right.  The  rule  to  be 
followed  is  this  :  — 

No  angle  which  exists  in  the  corresponding  Gothic  letter  or  figure  is  finished  with  a  fillet  except 
the  single  angle  of  the  G-othic  G,  and  the  angle  at  the  left  side  of  the  figure  4. 

This  rule  applies  to  the  Modern  Roman  only. 

65.  Order  of  Light  and  Heavy  Lines.  The  proper  placing  of  light  and  heavy  lines  will 
be  made  easy  by  noting  the  following  simple  rules : — 

All  horizontal  members  are  light  or  "  hair  "  lines  except  in  the  2,  5,  7,  and  the  alternative 
style  for  the  3,  given  in  the  last  line  of  Plate  VI. 

All  vertical  members  are  heav}r  except  those  of  N,  the  first  stroke  of  M,  and  the  right 
side  of  U. 

All  inclined  lines  extending  upward  to  the  right  are  light  lines,  except  in  Z  and  7. 

All  inclined  lines  extending  upward  to  the  left  are  heavy. 

No  two  heavy  members,  straight  or  curved,  join  or  cross  each  other,  except  the  two 
straight  lines  forming  the  left-hand  side  and  the  vertical  stem  of  the  Y.  When  two  curved 
members  join  each  other,  as  at  the  right  side  of  B,  R,  and  3,  they  must  become  fine  lines  before 
joining. 


ITALIC 


\ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOP 

1    QRSTUVWXYZ 
labcdefggh  ijklmn  op  qrs 
\:i2345  tuvwxyz  67890$ 

Stump  Writing 

ICGS  Wt^abcdefghijkl 

[.      mnopqrst  uvwxyz 

il|00 

'•€'..  Pile  Foundation.   Ash  Swamp 


Plate  VII 


LOWER-CASE  ITALIC  53 

66.  Special  Method  of  drawing  W  and  M.     The  following  method  will  be  found  useful 
in  drawing  the  W.     In  Fig.  10  let  1-2-3-4  be  the  space  to  be  occupied. 

From  1,  start  the  first  member,  guessing  at  its  direction. 

Bisect,  at  5,  the  space  remaining  between  2  and  the  first  member  as  started,  and  place 
6  vertically  below  5. 

At  7  bisect  the  distance  3-6,  and  draw  the  first  and 
second  members. 

From  2  draw  the  .fourth  member  parallel  to  the 
second,  and  work  in  the  third,  which  must  be  parallel 
to  the  first. 

In  drawing  the  M,  sketch  the  first  and  fourth 
members,  bisect  the  remaining  space  between  them  &' 

on  the  lower  limiting  line,  and  to  this  bisecting  point  draw  the  second  and  third  members. 

67.  Italic  Roman.     Plate  VII.     The  inclined   or  Italic  Roman  may  be  derived  from  the 
upright  Roman  by  the  process  explained  in  Art.  40.     Most  draftsmen  prefer  to  modify  slightly 
the  Italic  letters  which  would  be  obtained  as  strict  derivatives  of  the  Modern  Roman.     The 
modifications  shown  on  the  Plate  consist,  in  the  capitals,  in  making  them  slightly  narrower  ; 
in  carrying  the  curve  of  the  fillets  farther  down  the  stems,  and  in  extending  horizontally  along 
the  limiting  lines,  the  top  of  C  and  G,  and  both  the  top  and  the  bottom  of  S. 

68.  Lower-case  Italic.     The  lower-case  letters  might  be  derived  strictly  from  the  Modern 
Roman  lower  case,  but  a  less  formal  treatment  is  usually  given  them.     The  following  points 


54  ROMAN   LETTERS   AND   FIGURES 

concerning  the  letters  in  lines  3  and  4  of  Plate  VII,  as  compared  with  Modern  Roman,  should 
be  noted  :  the  spur,  instead  of  an  upward  curve  which  terminates  the  a  and  t  on  the  lower 
limiting  line  ;  the  rounded  forms  at  the  base  of  b,  the  right  side  of  e,  and  the  middle  of  y ;  the 
two  forms  for  g,  neither  being  like  the  Modern  Roman  ;  the  spur  extending  to  the  right  only 
at  the  base  of  i  and  1,  and  in  the  last  stroke  of  h,  k,  m,  and  n ;  the  terminations  of  s,  and 
finally  a  general  tendency  to  accentuate  horizontal  lines,  as  in  the  flattening  of  the  top  and 
bottom  of  s,  and  in  many  places  —  as  at  the  foot  of  i — by  bringing  the  left  edge  of  the  stroke 
nearly  to  the  lower  limiting  line  before  turning  it  into  the  horizontal  spur. 
For  Stump  Writing,  see  Art.  73. 

69.  Roman  Old  Style.  Plate  VIII.  As  the  name  implies,  Roman  Old  Style  is  the  alphabet 
used  by  the  ancient  Romans.  As  their  work  was  done  long  before  the  day  of  printing  with 
types,  the  examples  of  their  lettering  have  come  down  to  us  either  as  carvings  in  stone  or  as 
writing  with  reed  pens  —  usually  the  former.  Letters  were  also  made  in  metal  and  fastened 
to  stone. 

It  should  not  be  supposed  that  there  was  uniformity  of  shape  and  proportion  in  all  ancient 
Roman  lettering ;  for  then,  as  now,  lettering  was  a  matter  of  design,  and  each  designer  was  at 
liberty  to  follow  his  own  taste.  However,  certain  characteristics  and  principles  of  design 
were  rigidly  adhered  to,  and  we  have  inherited  some  beautiful  forms. 

The  alphabet  given  in  Plate  VIII  shows  the  forms  and  proportions  generally  adopted 
for  this  style.  The  figures  on  the  Plate  show  the  ratios  of  widths  to  height,  and  thus  in- 
dicate general  proportions.  The  following  points  concerning  details  of  design  should  be 
studied :  — 


•>!<»  ROMAN   OLD    STYLE 


I A IB  C  D  E  F  G  H !  I K  L  M  N  O 

fee       '•    5?    i     !  4?    i     ,'      6     1151     :     5     i     i  4i  !    i      6     ;     I5I      $    (t/;      i  4?  i     i    5     i    i    5?    i     i  4j  i     i     6     : 


l_ 

T- 


K:2:73::^      8  Q  P  in  s  v 

b.'l     ;  5^  ;.-*_/]-..  ;_-.lj-A_y;     ;   4   !     !/    ,     ',  4   i     !-^j     J4  !      *J 


PLAN  OF 

|:FIREPLACE       FILTER  BEDS 

TME  FOR 

ROUND  POND 

1908 


Plate  VIM 


LOWER-CASE   LETTERS   AND   FIGURES  57 

The  thin  lines,  including  the  spurs,  are  not  hair  lines.  This  style  was  used  for  inscrip- 
tions, to  be  read  from  a  distance,  and  very  fine  lines  were  not  used  as  they  produced  letters  not 
easily  read;  the  fine  lines  would  be  lost  and  only  a  jumble  of  heavy  lines  would  be  visible. 
The  Modern  Roman  lettering  is  now  sometimes  used  in  street  signs,  but  it  is  obviously  illegi- 
ble as  compared  with  the  more  solid  Old  Roman  and  the  still  more  solid  Gothic. 

The  thick  lines,  on  the  other  hand,  are  less  heavy  than  those  of  the  modern  style,  being 
but  three-fourths  of  a  unit  wide. 

The  spurs  are  short,  and  the  fillets  run  to  the  ends  of  the  spurs,  but  are  not  quite  tangent. 
Fillets  are  introduced  on  both  sides  of  the  stems,  a  treatment  that  goes  far  to  relieve  the  letters 
of  an  angular  appearance. 

The  kerns  are  drawn  at  a  considerable  angle  with  the  vertical,  and  this  also  reduces  the 
sharpness  of  some  corners. 

The  lower  ends  of  C  and  G  do  not  follow  the  corresponding  curve  of  O,  but  are  slightly 
flattened. 

70.  Lower-case  Letters  and  Figures.  These  were  unknown  to  the  ancient  Romans,  as  the 
lower-case  letters  are  an  invention  of  modern  times,  and  numbers  were  expressed  by  combina- 
tions of  letters  with  a  line  drawn  horizontally  above  the  combination. 

The  full  alphabet  of  the  lower-case  letters  is  not  given  in  the  Plate;  but  the  letters  shown 
on  line  3  show  types  of  variation  from  the  lower-case  letters  on  Plate  VI,  and  by  noting  the 
following  points  of  difference  the  whole  alphabet  can  be  drawn  readily:  — 

Heavy  strokes  ending  in  a  curve  at  the  lower  limiting  line,  as  at  the  base  of  a,  taper 
gradually  to  a  point. 


58  ROMAN  LETTERS  AND  FIGURES 

The  bulbs  terminating  the  upper  ends  of  a,  c,  etc.,  are  elongated  and  irregularly  pear- 
shaped. 

Spurs  at  the  upper  ends  of  vertical  stems,  except  in  q,  slope  slightly  downward  to  the  left. 

71.  Old  Roman  for  Architectural  Work.     The  Old  Roman  style  is  much  used  by  architects 
for  all  classes  of  lettering.     Large  titles  are  formed  of  capitals  carefully  executed  and  made 
solid  faced,  while  for  minor  titles  and  sub-titles  the  letters  are  often  left  in  outline  as  shown 
in  the  lower  left-hand  portion  of  Plate  VIII.     Even  the  small  lettering  in  the  body  of  draw- 
ings is  often  based  on  this  style,  the  capitals  only  being  used.     Sometimes  the  heavy  strokes  are 
brought  out  slightly;  sometimes  a  single  uniform  stroke  is  used  for  all  parts  of  the  letters,  the 
ceriphs  and  kerns  alone  serving  to  identify  the  letters  with  the  Old  Roman  style. 

Note  also  in  the  title  composed  of  outline  letters  that  the  lines  of  the  title  begin  on  a 
common  vertical,  an  arrangement  by  which  the  problem  of  centering  the  lines  about  an  axis  of 
symmetry  is  avoided.  This  arrangement  is  often  used  (especially  in  architectural  drawings) 
for  titles  of  minor  importance,  the  proper  position  in  this  case  being  in  one  of  the  left-hand 
corners  of  the  drawing. 

72.  Design  of  Letters  in  Roman  Inscriptions.     Plate  IX.     The  alphabets  given  in  Plate  VIII, 
commonly  called  Old  Roman,  depart  somewhat  from  the  designs  as  shown  in  the  ancient  Roman 
inscriptions.     These  departures  are  partly  for  the  purpose  of  meeting  the  exigencies  of  printing 
from  type,  but  they  show  also  radical  differences  in  design. 

During  the  fifteenth  century  several  Italians  made  detailed  studies  of  the  lettering  in  the 
best  Roman  inscriptions.  Among  these  was  Felicianus  of  Verona,  who,  in  the  latter  part  of 
that  century,  published  an  alphabet  which  in  his  opinion  embodied  the  best  designs.  His 


Plate  IX 


STUMP  WRITING  61 

alphabet,  as  shown  in  the  Ephemeris  Epigraphica,  Vol.  1,  is  given  in  Plate  IX.  The  proportions 
of  many  of  these  letters  are  quite  different  from  those  of  Plates  VI  and  VIII.  The  lines  are 
graceful,  and  much  more  free  and  elastic  than  those  of  the  Modern  Roman  style  (Plate  VI). 

An  inspection  of  inscriptions  by  architects  and  artists  of  repute  on  modern  buildings  and 
monuments  will  show  that  the  forms  found  in  the  ancient  Roman  carvings  are  still  the  model. 
Such  inspection  shows  also  that  the  proportions  of  letters  are  varied  to  suit  different  conditions. 
Note,  for  instance,  the  two  R's  of  Plate  IX.  The  first  is  used  when  such  letters  as  T,  V,  and  Y 
follow  the  R,  the  extended  tail  serving  to  fill  the  large  blank  area  which  would  otherwise  exist 
between  the  letters.  The  second  form  of  R  is  used  when  followed  by  B,  L,  etc.,  where  there 
is  no  large  area  between  the  letters.  When  R  is  followed  by  A,  the  tail  of  the  R  should 
be  drawn  in  even  more  closely,  to  avoid  a  large  area  between  the  tops  of  the  R  and  A.  For 
similar  reasons,  the  L  may  be  narrower  when  followed  by  A  or  O  than  when  followed  by  T, 
V,  or  Y. 

The  idea  that  good  lettering  is  a  matter  of  design  rather  than  adherence  to  fixed  rules  of 
proportion,  is  emphasized  by  the  fact  that  the  typical  alphabet  shown  by  Feliciauus  and  his 
contemporaries  differed  from  each  other. 

73-  Stump  Writing  is  -the  name  given  to  a  modification  of  Italic  letters.  The  lower-case 
alphabet  is  given  in  lines  5  and  6  of  Plate  VII.  The  capitals  are  those  of  the  ordinary 
Italic  alphabet,  with  the  exceptions  noted  in  line  5. 

Stump  writing  is  much  used  in  government  topographical  work  for  notes  and  other  data 
which  may  be  written  in  small  letters.  For  the  best  result,  stump  writing  is  executed  with 
single  strokes  of  a  very  fine  and  flexible  pen,  such  as  Gillott's  mapping  pen,  the  heavy  strokes 


62  ROMAN   LETTERS   AND   FIGURES 

being  formed  by  spreading  the  nibs.     This  requires  great  skill  and  constant  practice,  but  when 
properly  done,  gives  a  finish  to  the  letters  which  cannot  be  equaled  by  any  other  method. 

74.    Examples. 

1.  Draw  Plate  VI. 

2.  Make  a  title  of  the  following  :  — 

Grading  plan  for  Golf  Links  at  Riverside  Park.     Scale  60  ft.  to  1  in.     Date. 
Use  Modern  Roman  letters  one-half  inch  high  for  "  Golf  Links  "  and  "  Riverside 
Park,"  and  Gothic  for  the  remainder  of  the  title. 

3.  Make  a  suitable  arrangement  of  the  following  for  a  title  :  — 

Pratt  Library.     Detail  of  Main  Hall.      (Scale.)     Date. 

Use  Roman  Old  Style,  all  capitals  for  the  main  portions,  capitals  and-  lower-case 

for  the  date.      Show  a  "graphical"  scale  of  4  ft.  to  1  in.      See  Plate  XV  for 

an  example. 

4.  Draw  the  words  Hall  of  Records  in  two  lines,  using  Ancient  Roman  letters  (Plate  IX) 
as  large  as  will  be  well  accommodated  on  a  standard  sheet. 


Sing/e-stroke  Gof/j/c.    .. 

'@  '€  f&W'V'J  ^?Z"  $?&&'$ 
A  B  C'D  2f  FG  H/J  KrLM  NO  P 


Q  7?5  TU  V  W  X  YZ    & 


abode     g  h      k  /  m  n  op  q  r 


'  /      3^  ^      J7O-  */"* 

5  t  it  v  w  x  y  z 

&$'&$  f?  >  &&0r-  IZ3456789O 


Plate  X 


CHAPTER  VII 

SINGLE-STROKE   AND    MISCELLANEOUS    LETTERS 

75.  The  Use  of  Single-stroke  Letters.     By  far  the  greatest  amount  of  lettering  found  on 
most  plans,  especially  working  mechanical  drawings,  is  that  used  in  descriptive  notes,  sub-titles, 
etc.,  formed  by  single,  uniform,  and  usually  light  strokes  of  the  pen,  without  preliminary  pen- 
ciling.    Such  lettering  is  shown  on  Plates  X,  XI,  XII,  and  XIII,  and  is  usually  called  single- 
stroke  lettering. 

It  is  simply  small  Gothic  lettering  of  either  the  upright  or  the  slant  form,  but  its  successful 
execution  requires  some  special  study. 

76.  The  Pen.     It  is  of  the  utmost  importance  that  the  pen  be  well  adapted  to  the  work 
and  that  it  be  held  and  used  in  a  proper  manner.     Each  member  of  the  letters  must  be  made 
with  a  single  clean  stroke  of  the  pen  without  any  subsequent  touching  up,  and  the  members 
must  be  of  uniform  thickness.     This  means  that  the  pen  must  be  of  the  right  degree  of  coarse- 
ness to  yield  a  line  of  the  proper  thickness  without  spreading  the  nibs;  that  the  point  be 
smooth ;    that  the  pen  be  "  broken  in  "  so  that  the  ink  will  flow  freely ;  and  finally,  that  it  be 
held  with  both  nibs  squarely  on  the  paper  with  a  light  uniform  touch. 

Plate  XII  will  give  an  idea  of  the  character  of  lines  obtained  by  the  use  of  several  pens 
adapted  to  this  work. 

Pens  are  best  "  broken  in  "  to  work  freely  by  long-continued  use.  A  new  pen  may  be 
improved  by  drawing  it  many  times  over  the  surface  of  some  hard  rough  paper,  using  consid- 

65 


66  SINGLE-STROKE   AND   MISCELLANEOUS   LETTERS 

erable  pressure  as  if  drawing  ver}r  heavy  lines.  When  held  to  the  light,  the  nibs  should  be 
seen  to  be  very  slightly  separated,  otherwise  the  thick  India  ink  will  not  flow  freely.  If  the 
separation  is  not  obtained  by  the  process  just  described,  the  nibs  may  be  bent  backward  with 
the  fingers  (both  nibs  being  bent  at  .the  same  time),  or  they  may  be  hammered  very  slightly  on 
the  convex  side. 

The  pen  must  be  cleaned  frequently,  a  piece  of  bleached  cotton  cloth  being  most  suitable 
for  this  purpose. 

77.  Direction  of  Strokes.  In  Plate  X  the  alphabet  is  analyzed  as  to  the  order  and  direc- 
tion of  strokes,  the  small  figures  indicating  the  order,  and  the  arrows  the  direction.  It  must 
not  be  supposed  that  no  other  order  of  strokes  is  permissible  ;  for  instance,  of  the  four  strokes 
composing  E,  those  marked  2,  3,  4  may  be  drawn  in  any  order  with  respect  to  each  other.  It 
is  obviously  best,  however,  to  draw  stroke.  1  first.  The  coarseness  of  the  pen  and  the  freedom 
with  which  the  ink  flows  will  change  conditions  considerably,  a  coarse  pen  and  very  freely 
flowing  ink  necessitating  great  care  to  avoid  making  a  blot.  With  a  fine  pen,  trouble  of  this 
sort  is  less  likely  to  occur,  and  the  strokes  as  given  on  the  Plate  may  be  somewhat  simplified. 
For  instance,  the  C,  J,  O,  and  S  may  be  drawn  with  single  strokes.  Many  expert  letterers 
form  the  habit  of  always  making  the  letters  as  if  under  the  worst  conditions,  and  use  the  same 
number  of  strokes  whether  or  not  conditions  are  favorable  for  neat  work. 

The  general  considerations  governing  the  order  and  direction  of  strokes  may  be  stated  as 
follows :  — 

1.  For  long  upright  lines  the  pen  works  much  better  (especially  if  it  is  fine)  when  drawn 
downward  rather  than  upward.  This  is  one  teason  for  drawing  the  right  side  of  O  with  a 
downward  stroke. 


ABCDEFGrt/JKL  M/VOPQtf 
5TUYWXYZ  &  /^3456789 

aotbcdefg/i/Jk/mnopqrsfurwxyz 
P/aned  cedar  Posts  8"*  8*  6-?j"/ong. 
A  BCD  Upright  for  SUB  TITLES 

"Extended"  Letters   23579 

"COMPRESSED"  LETTERS      CLAY  &  GRAVEL. 

3  Bolts.     Drirtngfit.  tf"* 


Plate  XI 


PRACTICE  69 

2.  Ink  is  likely  to  run  from  the  pen  and  form  a  blot  if  the  pen  is  moved  upward  to  the 
left ;  hence,  the  short  stroke  to  the  right  and  slightly  downward  at  the  top  of  C,  G,  S,  and  6, 
and  at  the  bottom  of  J  and  S. 

3.  Ink  tends  to  run  into  an  acute  angle  between  two  lines,  especially  if  the  second  line  is 
drawn  away  from  the  vertex.     This  filling-in  of  angles  must  be  studiously  avoided.     Special 
care  is  needed  in  forming  the  angles  at  the  top  of  A,  M,  N,  and  W,  since  the  second  stroke 
forming  these  angles  is  directed  away  from  the  vertex.     It  is  well  to  allow  the  first  stroke  to 
dry  before  the  second  one  is  drawn.     Less  trouble  will  be  experienced  with  the  equally  acute 
angles  at  the  bottom  of  M,  N,  V,  and  W,  since  the  lines  are  drawn  toward  the  vertex  in  each 
case. 

The  reason  will  now  be  apparent  for  strokes  2  and  4  in  m,  and  for  similar  strokes  in  sev- 
eral other  lower-case  letters. 

78.  Special  Treatment.     Some  letterers  avoid  the  possibility  of  a  disagreeable  filling-in  at 
angles  by  leaving  a  very  small  open  space  between  the  ends  of  the  lines  forming  the  angles. 
For  instance,  the  top  of  A  may  be  treated  as  shown  in  the  analysis  of  that  letter  on  Plate  X, 
rather  than  as  shown  in  the  finished  form  below  it.     Even  in  such  places  as  at  the  top  and 
bottom  of  O,  where  there  is  but  slight  danger  of  trouble,  a  space  is  often  left  between  the  ends 
of  strokes.     The  effect  is  far  preferable  to  a  filled-in  angle,  or  to  the  inaccurate  meeting  of 
two  strokes. 

79.  Practice.     Since  single-stroke  lettering  must  be  done  without  going  over  the  lines 
repeatedly  to    make    corrections   and  without   preliminary   penciling,    considerable   informal 


70 


SINGLE-STROKE    ANT)   MISCELLANEOUS   LETTERS 


practice  is  usually  necessary  to  overcome  the  difficulties  suggested  above,  to  form  the  letters 
well,  and  to  preserve  a  uniform  slant. 

//////////    I   I   I  I   I  I  I  I  I  I  Flg'  n  giV6S  S°me  suggestions  for  informal  practice. 

//////////    I   I   I  I   I  I   I  I  I  I     The  ends  to  be  attained  in  drawing  the  straight  lines  are 

(~  (~  Q  Q  (~)  C)  C\  P  £*  £^  OO    smo°thness>  uniform  weight,  equal  length,  and    uniform 

direction. 

Note  cai.efuny  the  special  features  of  curves  in  the 
Bolt    Cam     Dot    inclined  letters  as  shown  at  (<?)  Plate  IV,  and  explained 

'"  AL*  40" 

preliminary  practice  should  be  done  on  smooth 
paper,  or  better  still  on  tracing  cloth  of  which  the  sur- 
face  lias  been  rukbed  with  chalk,  talc,  or*  "pounce"'  to 
remove  all  greasiness.  The  directions  given  in  Arts.  76 
and  77  must  be  kept  carefully  in  mind.  The  student 
should  sit  in  any  easy  position,  with  as  little  weight  as 

possible  resting  on  the  forearms  (especially  the  right  one),  and  he  must  be  very  careful  to 

hold  the  pen  lightly,  as  if  writing  ordinary  long  hand. 

80.  The  Slope  for  the  slant  letters  is  the  same  as  for  Gothic  letters,  Art.  39.  As  an  aid 
to  preserving  the  proper  direction,  it  is  well  to  rule  a  few  pencil  lines  across  the  limiting  lines 
at  the  correct  angle,  whether  for  inclined  or  vertical  strokes. 

In  drawing  the  upright  strokes  remember  that  it  is  much  better  to  err  on  the  side  of 
inclining  them  backward  (that  is,  upward  to  the  left),  rather  than  slightly  forward.  Indeed 
some  very  good  letterers  never  draw  a  strictly  vertical  line. 


Friday,  January  15. 

N  *?  Q 

riO.   I  29. 

I  £345678 


Examples  of  Single  -stroke  Got/lie  . 


"Extended"  Upright  Letters 

"Compressed"  Upright  and  5/ant  Letters 

HEAVY  STROKE-Ball-PointeclPen506F 

MEDIUM  STROKE-  6 ///off  >s  404  Pen 

Light  Stroke- G/llott'5  303  Pen 
•••'    Very  light  Stroke-  Oi/loff's  170  Pen 

The  most  generally          Figures,  when  written 

used  letters  are  the  with  lower-case  letter, 

light  stroke  slant  or  have  the  height  of  T. 
upright  letters  about '       Finished  Weight=35  * 

this  size.  12345678  Length  overall  ?5'-4i" 


Plate  XII 


CENTERING  THE  LINES  73 

81.  Titles  composed  of  Single-stroke  Letters.     Single-stroke  letters  are  often  used  for  the 
titles    of  simple    working   drawings.      Plate   XIII  shows  such  a  title  taken  directly  from  an 
actual  drawing.     It  is  somewhat  reduced  in  engraving,  the  length  of  the  longest  line  of  the 
original  being  7|  inches. 

82.  The  Centering  of  the  Lines  may  be  accomplished  by  one  of  the  methods  of  Art.  59,  but 
the  skilled  draftsman  usually  reaches  the  result  by  even  a  simpler  method,  as  follows  :    The 
limiting  lines  for  all  lines  of  words  having  been  drawn,  the  longest  line  is  penciled  in  with 
extreme  roughness,  the  sole  purpose  being  to  determine  that  the  line,  when  finally  lettered  in 
ink,  will  end  at  about  the  desired  distance  from  the  edge  of  the  sheet.     This  longest  line  hav- 
ing been  inked,  a  vertical  pencil  line  is  drawn  through  its  center,  to  mark  the  required  center 
of  the  remaining  lines. 

One  of  the  lines  adjacent  to  the  longest  line  is  next  roughly  penciled,  the  only  object 
being  to  find  out  about  how  long  the  line  will  be  when  finally  inked.  Some  attempt  is  made 
at  the  same  time  to  center  the  penciled  line.  No  erasure  is  made,  however,  even  though  the 
line  may  prove  to  be  very  much  off  center.  The  draftsman  then  measures  with  his  eye  the 
distance  to  right  or  left  at  which  the  line  should  have  been  started  to  be  accurately  centered, 
and,  at  the  point  thus  determined,  begins  his  lettering  in  ink.  As  his  work  along  the  line 
progresses,  he  compares  his  inked  work  with  the  pencil  draft  to  make  sure  that  the  inked  and 
penciled  lines  will  be  of  the  same  length,  and  that  therefore  the  inked  line  will  be  centered 
about  the  vertical  pencil  line. 

It  will  sometimes  happen  that,  in  the  rough  pencil  draft,  the  line  is  estimated  longer  or 
shorter  than  is  desirable  for  the  height  of  letters  to  be  used.  This  fact  will  be  discovered 


74 


SINGLE-STROKE   AND   MISCELLANEOUS   LETTERS 


when  the  inking  of  the  final  letters  is  well  under  way.  Unless  the  error  is  great,  it  will  not 
be  necessary  to  erase  work  already  done,  for  by  a  discreet  compression  or  extension  (as  the 
case  may  require)  of  letters  and  spaces,  a  correction  of  the  original  error  of  judgment  may  be 
made. 


83. 


Single-stroke  Figures.  Nothing  more  effectually  defeats  the  purpose  of  a  working 
drawing  than  illegible  figures.  It  is  always  desirable  that  figures  be 
not  only  legibly,  but  also  neatly  drawn.  Moreover,  on  many  draw- 
ings the  dimensions  are  so  numerous  that  the  careful  execution  of 
the  figures  becomes  as  important  as  that  of  the  small  lettering. 

Fig.  12  shows  an  example  of  dimensioning.  Figures  must 
stand  out  clearly  by  themselves.  They  must  never  be  written 
directly  on  lines  of  the  drawing,  but  should  be  separated  from  them 
by  a  clear  space.  This  precaution  is  especially  important  if  the 
drawing  is  to  be  reproduced  by  "blue-printing"  or  by  a  photo-engrav- 
ing process. 

The  break  in  the  dimension  line  should  not  be  greater  than  is 
necessary  to  admit  the  figures  comfortably;  otherwise  a  ragged  ap- 
pearance is  given  to  the  dimensioning. 


Valve  Rod  Head 
I-  Ma/teab/e  Iron 


Fig.    12 

84.  The  Height  of  Figures  for  use  in  conjunction  with  letter- 
ing is  the  height  of  t  for  that  lettering  ;  that  is,  figures  are  intermediate  in  height  between 
the  capitals  and  the  class  of  lower-case  letters  which  contains  a  and  c  (Art.  24). 


Commonwealth   of  Massachusetts 

Metropolitan   Water  Works 
Wachusett   Reservoir 

Details  of  Railing  for 
Quinepoxet  and  Stillwater  River  Bridges 

Scales,  Full  size,  half  size  and  l£ins.=  lft 
May  25,1904. 

For  spacing  of  posts  see 
Sheef  No.  II  for  Quinepoxet  railing, 
"      "   7  "   Stillwafar 


Plate  XIII 


BLOCK   LETTERS  7V 

85.  De  Vinne.     Plate  XIV.     This  modern  face  is  a  modification  of  Old  Roman  which  has 
found  some  favor  among  draftsmen.      No  lines  are  very  light ;   hence  lettering  in  this  style 
"blue-prints"  well,  and  is  well  adapted  to  photo-reduction.     The  letters  may  be  extended  or 
compressed,  and  may  be  used  with  good  effect  in  conjunction  with  the  Gothic  style.     See 
Plate  XV. 

86.  Open-faced  Gothic.     Plate  XVI.     Line  1  shows  an  open-faced  or  outline  letter  which 
has  a  limited  legitimate  use ;  namely,  the  indication  of  certain  features  among  other  details,  in 
such  a  manner  that  the  lettering  may  be  found  easily  but  not  be  disagreeably  prominent.     For 
instance,  a  state  map  may  contain  so  much  lettering  to  show  towns,  rivers,  etc.,  that  the  county 
names  in  small  letters  would  not  be  readily  found,  nor  would  they  cover  sufficiently  the  areas 
occupied  by  the  counties.     On  the  other  hand,  letters  large  enough  to  cause  the  county  names 
to  extend  across  the  desired  area  might,  if  of  solid  face,  look  disagreeably  prominent.     In  this 
case  an  open-faced  letter  will  serve  the  desired  purpose  while  avoiding  the  undesirable  features. 

87.  Block  Letters.     Plate  XVI.     Lines  2  and  3  show  a  device  by  which  prominence  may 
be  given  to  letters  without  increasing  their  size.     Open-faced  letters  may  have  heavy  lines  added 
to  the  right-hand  and  lower  sides  of  their  members,  or  a  line  or  lines  may  be  drawn  near  these 
sides  of  black-faced  letters.     In  either  case  the  effect  is  that  of  letters  cut  from  material  of 
considerable  thickness,  and  fastened  to  a  background. 

The  value  of  this  treatment  is  doubtful.  Block  letters  may  be  justified  where  there  is  a 
real  need  of  prominence,  with  but  limited  room  for  the  lettering.  Otherwise  plain  letters,  well 
designed  and  carefully  executed,  are  more  likely  to  be  satisfactory. 


78  SINGLE-STROKE   AND   MISCELLANEOUS   LETTERS 

88.  ''Shadow  Letters."  Plate  XVI,  line  4,  shows  an  application  of  "shadow"  letters 
which  may  be  derived  from  the  block  letters  of  line  2  by  omitting  the  light  lines  of  the  block 
letters.  These  shadow  letters  should  be  used  with  caution.  They  are  not  well  adapted  to  use 
in  titles,  but  may  be  employed  to  a  small  extent  to  indicate  some  prominent  feature  in  the  body 
of  a  drawing.  They  should  be  used  only  when  Roman  or  plain  Gothic  letters  have  been  used 
for  other  features  so  freely  as  to  necessitate  a  change  for  the  sake  of  variety. 


DE  VINNE 


HiA  B  Q  D  E  F;  G  H !  J  K  LM1VJ 
|:  OPQRSTUVWXYZ& 

5^  5  V         6  5  5j  5  5  8  5LZ  55  65 

-IM  5f 

plab  c  defghijklmnopqrst 
| :  12345  uvwxyz   67890 

I        4j         4j  4j        4?  %/  41       4r  4?        4e  5 

MS 

Diagram   Showing 

1        HYDRAULIC   ELEMENTS 

— for 

9-FT.  CIRCULAR  SECTION 


Plate  XIV 


COMMONWEALTH  °E  MASSACHUSETTS 

METROPOLITAN  WATER  WORKS 

SLJDBLJRY  DAJU 

SOUTHBOROUGH 

RECORD  DRAWING 

0'  8'  16'  24' 


1899 


Plate  XV 


D   17        F 
IPLAINI  OF  W 
BRIDGE 


ELM  BROOK  WATER  WORKS 
DETAILS  OF 

WASTE   WEIR 

DAMAN0.3 


T 


Plate  XVI 


7/ 


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